Question

A population growing in a habitat with limited resources shows four phases of growth in the following sequence
(a)Acceleration - Deceleration - Lag phase - Asymptote
(b)Asymptote - Acceleration - Deceleration - Lag phase
(c)Lag phase - Acceleration - Deceleration - Asymptote
(d)Acceleration - Lag phase - Deceleration - Asymptote

Answer 1

Hint: In any kind of population growth there are 4 types of growth stages. If the resources of a population’s needs are in small numbers, the growth is initially quite slow. It then rises rapidly followed by sluggish population growth. The population decreases after this and then remains steady.

Complete answer:
When the population that develops in an ecosystem has limited resources, it first increases slowly, i.e. lag phase, then the acceleration period is the rapid growth of the population. The rate of growth slows down after the acceleration period, which signals the declaration period and enters the asymptote phase when the population density meets carrying capacity. Thus, the growth phases will begin with the lag phase, followed by growth acceleration, then growth deceleration, and finally asymptote.

Additional Information:
The two simplest population growth models use deterministic equations to explain the rate of population size change over time. Exponential growth, the first of these models, describes populations that increase in numbers without any limits to their growth. The second model, logistic growth, imposes limits to more rapid reproductive growth as the population size increases.
So, the correct answer is, ‘Lag phase - Acceleration - Deceleration - Asymptote’.

Note: No population of any species in nature has sufficient resources at its disposal to allow for exponential growth. This leads to competition for limited resources between individuals. Ultimately the 'fittest' person lives and reproduces. In nature, a given ecosystem has sufficient resources to sustain a maximum possible amount, beyond which there can be no further development. This limit is known as the carrying capacity of nature (K) within that habitat for that species.