Question

How do you estimate the carrying capacity of a population?

Answer 1

Hint: Carrying capacity is defined as the number of individuals present in a population provided by optimum resources. It is calculated by the use of N= number of factors like population density at time t, r= intrinsic rate of natural resources and K= carrying capacity.

Complete answer:
Every individual in a population depends on the resources present in the environment for its survival. Carrying capacity is the number of individuals present in a population which receives optimum resources for its survival.
Carrying capacity calculated by the use of a given formula, where K = carrying capacity, r= intrinsic rate of natural resources and N= population density at time t.
$\dfrac{ dN }{ dt } =\quad rN\left( \dfrac { K-N }{ K } \right)$
After exceeding carrying capacity the resources become deficient which leads to starvation. Scarcity of food mainly affects those organisms which only depend on one food whereas omnivorous animals can survive in starvation conditions by switching over to alternate food items.

Additional information:
The carrying capacity is used to represent population growth in graphical form, which is divided into exponential growth and logistic growth. In case of exponential growth, the graph obtained is J shaped which shows that population does not reach equilibrium whereas in logistic growth graph shape is S, which shows a slow increase in population size and after a certain period the growth resists.
The formula use in exponential growth is $\dfrac{ dN }{ dt } =\quad rN\ $ and the formula use in logistic growth is $\dfrac{ dN }{ dt } =\quad rN\left( \dfrac { K-N }{ K } \right)$ $=\quad rN\left ( \dfrac { 1-N }{ K } \right)$.

Note:
Exponential growth takes place in an irruptive type of population whereas logistic growth takes place in a stable type of population, therefore in exponential phase deceleration never occurs because equilibrium condition does not occur and in logistics growth deceleration occurs before equilibrium.