Final answer:
To find when the populations of two frog species are equal t years after 2010, the equation 42 + 6t = 30 + 8t is used, representing the respective population growths of each species.
Step-by-step explanation:
To model the equal populations of two species of frogs t years after 2010, we need to set up two equations representing the population growth of each species and then set them equal to each other. The first species started with 42 frogs and increases by 6 frogs per year, so its population after t years can be represented as P1 = 42 + 6t. The second species started with 30 frogs and increases by 8 frogs per year, so its population after t years can be represented as P2 = 30 + 8t.
For the populations to be equal:
42 + 6t = 30 + 8t
This is our equation modeling equal populations of the two frog species t years after 2010.