Final answer:
The Lincoln Index is a biological method for estimating animal population sizes by marking a sample of individuals, releasing them, and then capturing a second sample to count recaptures.
Step-by-step explanation:
The Lincoln Index is a method used to estimate the size of animal populations within a certain area, often utilized in the field of biology. To use the Lincoln Index, you need two sets of data, which can be collected through primary or secondary sources. In the first sample, you capture a number of individuals, mark them, and then release them back into the population. After a given period of time, you capture a second sample and count how many of them are marked.
To estimate the population size, you use the formula:
N = (M \times C) / R, where N is the estimated population size, M is the number of marked individuals in the first sample, C is the total number of individuals captured in the second sample, and R is the number of recaptured marked individuals from the second sample.
By applying the formula N = (M x C) / R, biologists can estimate the total population. It assumes full mixing and no population changes between samples.