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Questions and Answers
What happens to the wildebeest population when the number is negative?
Based on the information provided, what is the relationship between the size of the number and the effect on the wildebeest population?
In which year did the wildebeest population reach approximately 1.3 million?
When did the drought that affected the wildebeest population end at the latest?
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What conditions would cause the wildebeest population to fluctuate around a carrying capacity of 1.3 million?
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The wildebeest population dropped suddenly by about ______ in one year.
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The wildebeest population appears to have reached ______ by 1998.
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The population will continue to fluctuate around a carrying capacity of ______ as long as there are no huge disturbances or new limiting factors introduced into the system.
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The drought that affected the wildebeest population could have ended as early as ______.
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The wildebeest population is affected more when ______ the number.
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Match the following events with their impact on the wildebeest population:
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Match the following years with the associated events in the wildebeest population:
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Match the following population numbers with their significance in the wildebeest population:
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Study Notes
Fluctuations in the Serengeti wildebeest population
- Rinderpest, a disease, was killing animals in the Serengeti before 1961.
- Rinderpest spread from domestic cattle to wild animals like wildebeest and buffalo.
- Cattle began being vaccinated against rinderpest in the early 1960s.
- By 2011, rinderpest was completely eliminated.
- The wildebeest population started at around 250,000 and rose to 1.5 million.
- The absence of rinderpest and abundance of grass led to increased wildebeest population.
- Overpopulation resulted in competition for grass, leading to some wildebeest dying due to lack of food.
- The wildebeest population displayed cyclic fluctuations, with periods of increase and decrease.
- During periods of lower population, there was ample food, leading to population increase.
- After 1977, the population fluctuated by small amounts, except for a significant decrease during the 1993-1994 drought.
- The population eventually recovered, reaching 1.3 million by 1998.
- The wildebeest population will continue to fluctuate around a carrying capacity of 1.3 million unless major disturbances or new limiting factors occur.
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Description
Quiz: Test your knowledge on the eradication of rinderpest and its impact on wildebeest population in the Serengeti. Discover how successful vaccination efforts led to the elimination of the disease and a significant rise in wildebeest numbers.
