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What is a carrying capacity?

What is a carrying capacity?

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Asked by Marshallje, Last updated: Dec 25, 2024

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5 Answers

L. Brett

L. Brett

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L. Brett
L. Brett, Sales Manager, MBA, Detroit

Answered Feb 18, 2021

An environment's carrying capacity is the maximum population size of a biological species that can be maintained in that specific environment, given the food, habitat, water, and other resources available.

In population ecology, carrying capacity is specified as the environment's maximal load, which is different from the theory of population equilibrium, which may be far beneath an environment's carrying capacity.

A logistic function may shape the effect of carrying capacity on population dynamics. Carrying capacity was initially used to establish the number of animals that could graze on an area of land. The concept has recently been applied to humans from the perspective of environmentalism. It is the maximum number of individuals of a species that an environment can support.

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S. Hughes

S. Hughes

S. Hughes
S. Hughes

Answered Feb 12, 2021

Carrying capacity is the population size or density of a species that an environment can support. Before a species hits this point, its population tends to grow at an exponential rate. However, the exponential growth of the population begins to reduce once a species surpasses the carrying capacity of its ecosystem.

.This is usually caused by factors such as disease, shortages of resources, competition within a population for other resources. It is important to note that the carrying capacity is not the same for all species living in an environment. The reason is that there are differences when it comes to the food choice, special requirements, and shelter of each species.

A species will experience a decrease in its population once its population exceeds the carrying capacity of its ecosystem. What happens next is that the affected species will begin to die off. What also causes a species to surpass the carrying capacity of its ecosystem is when there is an uncontrollable increase or growth of its population.

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T. Perez

T. Perez

T. Perez
T. Perez

Answered Feb 12, 2021

Carrying capacity will be defined as the average population size that is connected to the habitat. This means that there should only be a certain number of species that are available in an area. Otherwise, the different species will be unable to survive because there will not be enough items that are available.

There are different environmental factors that should be considered. One of the most important factors is food. If there wouldn’t be enough food, there is a big chance that the species will be unable to carry on and increase in number. Other environmental factors are shelter, water, mates, and so much more. Limited resources will always be a problem in a habitat.

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E. Good

E. Good

E. Good
E. Good

Answered Jan 02, 2019

Carrying capacity is a concept stemming from Biology but also used in other relevant disciplines such as population statistics, environmental planning, sustainability. It was one of the earliest concepts related to the issue of scale and refers to the maximum number of individuals that the environment they are in can support.

This takes into account the amount of water, possible crops and means of regenerating them for the purpose feeding that population. It is not just the physical size of the land containing them. In Hong Kong, for instance, millions live in a space that might seem wholly inadequate.

The concept of carrying capacity can also be applied to vehicles: the maximum number it can hold without reducing safety. Oxygen levels are also important! The answer to this question is C.

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John Smith

John Smith

John Smith
John Smith

Answered May 24, 2017

The greatest number of individuals that an area can sustain over the long term
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