Question

ecosystems and their resources are finite. eventually, populations run out of food, space, or some other resource they need to continue growing. so there is a maximum number of individuals within a population that an ecosystem can support. this maximum number is the ecosystem’s carrying capacity. bacterial population (graph with population size (in billions) on y - axis, time elapsed (hours) on x - axis from 0 to 24, data points showing bacterial growth). based on the graph, what was the petri dish’s approximate carrying capacity for bacteria? options: 15 billion, 17 billion, 18 billion, 24 billion

Explanation:

Step1: Understand Carrying Capacity

Carrying capacity is the maximum population an ecosystem (here, Petri dish) can support, so we look for where the population stabilizes on the graph.

Step2: Analyze the Graph

The graph shows bacterial population over time. After a certain time (around 20 hours and beyond), the population levels off. Looking at the y - axis (population size in billions), the stable population is around 17 billion (checking the points after the growth phase: the dots stabilize near 17, not 15 (too low), 18 (a bit high), or 24 (way too high as time is 24 hours but population doesn't reach 24)).

Answer:

17 billion