Virtual Lab: Population Biology Answer Sheet

Name: sarvpriya jakhar

Date: 15/05/2016

Hypothesis: If they reproduce alone, the species multiply while if the species grow
together, it takeslesser number to reproduce..
Data Table
P. aurelia grown
alone, cells/mL

P. caudatum grown
alone, cells/mL

P. aurelia grown in mixed P caudatum grown in

culture, cells/ mL
mixed culture, cells/mL

Day O

Day 2

10

10

10

Day 4

54

28

34

22

Day 6

86

52

64

18

Day 8

96

60

80

16

Day 10

98

56

94

10

Day 12

98

58

94

Day 14

96

58

94

Day 16

96

56

98

Graph the different populations on the same graph; use a different colour for each.
Journal
1. What are the objectives for this experiment? (you can summarize)
This experiment is to observe the competition between the growth of Paramecium Aurelia andparamecium
caudatum. This experiment will determine the number of growth of each cell.
2. What is exponential growth? Draw a simple graph to illustrate the shape.

3. Explain how you tested your hypothesis.

In order to test my hypothesis, I created three separate test tubes that contained rice in each tube. In the
first tube, I added P. caudatum alone. In the second tube, I added P. Aurelia alone. In the third tube, I
mixed of the both species together in order to analyze how they would interact together.

4. On what day did the Paramecium caudatum population reach the carrying capacity of the environment
when it was grown alone? How do you know?
The P. caudatum reached the carrying capacity at day eight. After day eight, the numbers were fairly the
same.

5. On what day did the Paramecium aurelia population reach the carrying capacity of the environment?
How do you know?
The P. Aurelia population reached the carrying capacity on day 14. It reached the highest volume and then
went down from there.
6. Explain the differences in the population growth patterns of the two Paramecium species. What does
this tell you about how Paramecium aurelia uses available resources?
I think that the aurela had a higher count and grew at a faster rate because it utilized the resources more
effectively than the caudatum did. Both of the species were competing for the available resources in the
tube. The Caudatum grew at a slower rate because it used the resources a lot faster which caused them
to diminish quickly.
7. Describe what happened when the Paramecium populations were mixed in the same test tube. Do the
results support the principle of competitive exclusion? (you may need to briefly explain what
competitive exclusion is)
When both of the species were mixed together in the same test tube, the P. Aurelia grew very quickly. The
P. caudatum did not grow fast and remained at a lower ratio. The P. Aurelia exceeded the P. caudatum and
at the end, they all died due to the scarcity of resources. The P. Aurelia remained at a high amount.
8. Explain how this experiment demonstrates that no two species can occupy the same niche.
This experiment proves that no two species occupy the same niche because one of the species eventually
expires due to the fact that they are fighting for the same resources. Eventually, one of the species will
overcome the other species. The lack of resource will cause the other to disappear.
Post-laboratory Questions:
1. What served as the food for the paramecia in this experiment?
a. Rice

b. Oats
c. Bacteria
d. Nothing, they are photosynthetic
2. Which of the following can influence the carrying capacity of a population?
a. Availability of food
b. Availability of water
c. Competition
d. Buildup of toxins
e. All of the above

3. Which type of competition would be observed between organisms within the P. caudatum culture?
a. Interspecific
b. Intraspecific
c. There would be no competition, they are of the same species
4.

Which culture reached its carrying capacity the fastest in this experiment?
a. P. caudatum, alone
b. P. aurelia, alone
c. P. aurelia, mixed

5. Based upon your data, which culture experienced the greatest rate of exponential growth?
a. P. caudatum, alone
b. P. aurelia, alone
c. P. caudatum, mixed
d. P. aurelia, mixed
6.

Based upon the data, which organism appeared more efficient at using its resources?
a.
P. caudatum
b.
P. aurelia

Hare and Lynx population graph (label your axis)

Human population graph

Competition and Carrying Capacity Analysis

1. Describe the relationship you see in the graph of the snowshoe hare and the lynx
population. (use the technical term) Table 4 and graph

2. How would you explain the respective growth cycles of the snowshoe hare and the lynx
populations? Table 4 and graph

3. Describe the growth of the human population in the past 350 y. table 5 and graph

4. Why did the human population growth rate change in the 1800s? table 5 and graph

5. Why might scientists and others be concerned about this pattern? table 5

6. Has the human population reached its carrying capacity? Why or why not? table 5

7. How is the horse population in Australia similar to the Human Population? graph 1

8. What animals do horses compete with in Australia?

9. How is the horse graph 1 different from the graph created from table 4?

10.
What can be done to control the rate of growth for the horses? Can this be done to
the human population? Why or why not?