[Campbell Biology P.1240] According to the 'Research Method' section in Figure 53.2, which of... | Practice Question

According to the 'Research Method' section in Figure 53.2, which of the following are key assumptions of the mark-recapture method for estimating population size?

  • A: Marked and unmarked individuals have the same probability of being captured or sampled.
  • B: All individuals in the population must be physically tagged for identification.
  • C: The marked organisms must have mixed completely back into the population.
  • D: There is no significant birth, death, immigration, or emigration during the resampling interval.
  • E: The population size remains constant over time.

Explanation

The 'Technique' section explicitly states the assumptions: 'The method assumes that marked and unmarked individuals have the same probability of being captured or sampled, that the marked organisms have mixed completely back into the population, and that no individuals are born, die, immigrate, or emigrate during the resampling interval.'