Question

how do african wild dog pack populations change over time?
to understand more about african wild dogs, scientists need to know how often they reproduce to predict how populations might change over time. african wild dogs live in packs of 7 - 15. one female dog of the pack gives birth to one litter every year. a litter is the group of young animals born to an animal at one time. the average number of pups per litter is 8.

1. sketch a graph that shows what you predict should happen to a single pack of wild dogs over 10 years if there were enough resources for all the dogs to survive and the death rate was very low. sketch your graph assuming the population started at 10.

(graph with population on the y - axis and time (years) on the x - axis, labeled figure 1 wild dog population vs. time)

Explanation:

Step1: Determine Growth Pattern

Since one female has 8 pups/year, and death rate is low, population grows by 8 yearly (assuming 1 female reproducing; initial pop 10, so net growth +8/year). This is linear growth (constant increase per year) or could be exponential if more females reproduce over time, but with 1 female initially, linear first.

Step2: Calculate Yearly Populations

• Year 0: \( P_0 = 10 \)
• Year 1: \( P_1 = 10 + 8 = 18 \)
• Year 2: \( P_2 = 18 + 8 = 26 \)
• Year 3: \( P_3 = 26 + 8 = 34 \)
• Year 4: \( P_4 = 34 + 8 = 42 \)
• Year 5: \( P_5 = 42 + 8 = 50 \)
• Year 6: \( P_6 = 50 + 8 = 58 \)
• Year 7: \( P_7 = 58 + 8 = 66 \)
• Year 8: \( P_8 = 66 + 8 = 74 \)
• Year 9: \( P_9 = 74 + 8 = 82 \)
• Year 10: \( P_{10} = 82 + 8 = 90 \)

Step3: Sketch the Graph

• X - axis: Time (Years: 0 to 10)
• Y - axis: Population (from 0 to 90+)
• Plot points (0,10), (1,18), (2,26), ..., (10,90) and draw a straight line (or slightly curved if considering more females reproducing as population grows, but linear for simplicity with 1 reproducing female initially). The graph should show a steady increase over time, starting at 10 and rising by 8 each year.

Answer:

The graph should have a vertical axis labeled "Population" and horizontal axis "Time (Years)". Plot points for each year (0,10) to (10,90) and connect them, showing a linear (or near - linear) upward trend, indicating population growth due to annual litters with low mortality.