Question

There are 35 chipping sparrows and 40 cowbirds in a forest. Female cowbirds are parasites to other bird species like the chipping sparrows. If the chipping sparrow population size suddenly decreased to 15, how would it affect the size of the cowbird population? A. The cowbird population would increase. B. The cowbird population would decrease. C. The cowbird population would go extinct. D. The cowbird population would stay the same.

Answer 1

The correct option is B) The cowbird population would decrease.

Step-by-step explanation:

A decrease in the population of chipping sparrows will lead to limited food resources for female cowbirds as they feed on the chipping sparrows. Due to this, the cowbirds will compete with each other for food as food resource will become limited. The competition might be intraspecific or interspecific if other species also fed on the chipping sparrows. As a result, the population of the chipping cowbirds will also decrease.