This lab using nonliving creatures still depicts and accurate example of natural population control. This lab accurately shows how when a predator population depends on it's prey population. A predator population can only increase if there was a previous increase in its prey population, and a predator population decreases when there was a previous decrease in it's prey population.
As our graph shows our predator population of wolves struggled to survive throughout the beginning of their existence. This was because of the small population of prey they were expected to feed on. Once the population of the prey rose high enough there was rapid exponential growth in the wolf population. This is natural population control. As one population gets to large another one grows to balance it out.
Our lab was cut short due to time, but next we would expect the rabbit population to continue decreasing. As the rabbit population decreased, so would the wolf population. The rabbit population would probably go extinct in this lab because this lab is slightly unrealistic, but in real life the rabbit population would see a major decrease. The loss in the rabbit population would cause a decrease in the wolf population until the wolf population became very low as well and the process would start over again with the rabbit population beginning to rise again.
No comments:
Post a Comment