A Laboratory Experiment Followed the Growth of a Flour Beetle

question 56

Multiple Choice

A laboratory experiment followed the growth of a flour beetle (Tribolium sp.) population over time. At first the population increased dramatically, but later the growth slowed and the population size leveled off. Although food (the wheat flour in which they live) was still abundant, the flour beetles resorted to eating their own eggs when population densities got high. What can we conclude about cannibalism in this species?

• A)It has no effect on the growth of the population, as food scarcity is clearly the limiting factor.
• B)It is clearly maladaptive, as populations always do best when their densities increase as much as possible.
• C)It is a density-dependent means of population control.
• D)It is a density-independent means of population control.
• E)We cannot reach any conclusions based on the information provided.

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Definitions:

Required Production

The quantity of products that must be manufactured or produced to meet customer demand.

Units

A measure of quantity used to express the amount of product made or available.

Unit Product Cost

The total cost incurred to produce, manufacture, or acquire a product, divided by the number of units produced, representing the cost per individual unit.

Estimated

An approximation or educated guess based on available information or data.