Final answer:
Different factors limit nonmigratory and migratory wildebeest populations due to varying access to food and environmental conditions, including climate and predation. Migratory herds face fluctuating conditions and diverse predators, while nonmigratory herds deal with more stable but localized challenges.
Step-by-step explanation:
Nonmigratory and migratory wildebeest populations are limited by different factors because of their contrasting lifestyles and habitats. Food availability plays a significant role in the limitation of these populations. For migratory wildebeest, migration is a strategy to follow the growth of rain-ripened grass, which varies with seasons and rainfall patterns, impacting food availability. In contrast, nonmigratory populations do not have the opportunity to move to new feeding grounds and are therefore more constrained by the local availability of resources.
Climate can affect migration patterns, as wildebeest move to areas with preferable climate conditions to access food. Predation is also a factor that differentially affects nonmigratory and migratory populations. While migratory herds may encounter various predators along their routes, nonmigratory herds face a consistent set of predators in their stable environment.
Lastly, it is important to note that nonmigratory populations are also limited by the same and other factors, just in different ways, opposing the notion that nonmigratory wildebeest are not limited. Environmental pressures, including available habitat space and competition, also affect these populations' viability.