Final answer:
Simultaneous examination of predator and prey population trends is known as a Joint population trajectory, which is vital for understanding predator-prey dynamics and assessing ecosystem health. The correct answer is option 2.
Step-by-step explanation:
The simultaneous examination of predator and prey population trends is a concept that falls within the realm of population ecology, which is a sub-discipline of biology. The correct term for this examination is Joint population trajectory. This term describes how the populations of two species, typically a predator and its prey, change over time in relation to each other.
Predator-prey dynamics often exhibit cycles where the population size of the prey influences the population size of the predator and vice versa. For example, as shown in Figure 1, the cycling of snowshoe hare and lynx populations in Northern Ontario is representative of these intricate dynamics.
The answer to the question posed is that simultaneous examination of predator and prey population trends is called a Joint population trajectory (Option 2). This concept is important for conservation biologists who utilize such trajectories, among other statistical tools, to assess the health of ecosystems and make predictions about future population changes.