Question

Two species of flour beetles, Tribolium castaneum and Tribolium freemani, are competing according to the Lotka–Volterra equations. If the α of T. freemani on T. castaneum is 1.5, the addition of 150 T. freemani individuals would depress the T. castaneum population growth rate by the same amount as the addition of _______ T. castaneum individuals would.

1) 0
2) 75
3) 150
4) 225

Answer 1

225 T. castaneum individuals will depress their own population growth rate as much as 150 T. freemani individuals would, according to the Lotka-Volterra competition model, given that their impact coefficient is 1.5.

Step-by-step explanation:

The direct answer to how many T. castaneum individuals will depress the population growth rate by the same amount as 150 T. freemani individuals, given that the α (alpha) of T. freemani on T. castaneum is 1.5, is 225 T. castaneum individuals (Option 4).

An explanation for this involves the Lotka-Volterra competition equations, which describe how the population of one species affects the growth rate of another competing species. In this instance, α represents how many T. castaneum individuals have the same impact as one T. freemani individual. To calculate the equivalent number of T. castaneum individuals, we multiply the number of T. freemani individuals by α (150 x 1.5), resulting in 225 T. castaneum individuals. Hence, the addition of 150 T. freemani individuals depress the T. castaneum population growth rate to the same level as 225 T. castaneum individuals would.