After a successful captive-breeding program, 50 spoon-billed sandpipers (a uniqu

Question

After a successful captive-breeding program, 50 spoon-billed sandpipers (a unique species of shorebird known for its spoon-shaped bill) were reintroduced in their native breeding range in the high arctic. Now, ten years later, you are part of a research team devoted to studying the response of the sandpipers to reintroduction. You successfully capture 25 sandpipers using "cannon nets" (mist-nets designed for capturing bird in open habitat) and you mark them with plastic leg bands. You return at a later date and capture 30 sandpipers, of which 5 have plastic leg bands. What is the estimated size of the current population of sandpipers? Demographic studies prior to the sandpiper population crash found that their maximum per capita growth rate was 0.8 per year and that their breeding range could sustain approximately 300 individuals. Assuming the correct population growth model and using this information and your estimate of the current population size, what is the current realized per capita growth rate (r_realized)? At what rate is the population currently growing (dN/dt)?

Explanation / Answer

a)

According to the mark-recapture method,

R/T = M/N ; where,

R = marked recaptures = 5

T = Total of the second sample = 30

M = Marked initially = 25

N= Population of sandpipers

5/30 = 25/N; N = (25 * 30) / 5 = 150

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