Question

wildbeest population data

making sense of historical wildbeest population data

1. describe how the historical data compares to the data you collected during the simulation.
2. before 1960, a disease called rinderpest was killing many of the animals in the serengeti. the disease spread from domestic cattle to wild animals like wildebeest and buffalo. in the early 1960s, the cattle began being vaccinated against rinderpest. by 2011, rinderpest was considered to be completely eliminated.

a. use this information and what you figured out during the kinesthetic model: simulating the serengeti and the graph above to explain what happened to the wildebeest population

Explanation:

1. Without the simulation - data, a direct comparison cannot be made precisely. However, one could look at trends like growth rate, population size at certain time - points etc. in both data sets if available.

2a. Before the 1960s, rinderpest was killing wildbeest, likely causing a decline or slow growth in the population. When cattle vaccination against rinderpest started in the early 1960s, the spread of the disease to wildbeest was reduced. By 2011, with rinderpest eliminated, the wildbeest population likely experienced less mortality from this disease, which could have contributed to population growth as seen in the graph (if it shows an upward trend post - 1960s).

Answer:

1. Without simulation data, a detailed comparison is not possible. But trends such as growth rate and population size at specific times could be compared if available.

2a. Rinderpest caused wildbeest population decline or slow growth before the 1960s. Cattle vaccination reduced disease spread, and with rinderpest elimination by 2011, wildbeest population likely grew as shown in the graph (if upward - trending post - 1960s).