While doing research on a lake, biologists tagged 200 walleye. Later, they captured 160 walleye, of which 16 had tags. What is the BEST estimate for the walleye population?
Responses
A 2,600
B 2,000
C 3,000
D 2,300
To find an estimate for the walleye population, we can use the proportion method:
(Tagged fish in sample / Total sample size) = (Tagged fish in population / Total population size)
Plugging in the values we know:
(16 / 160) = (200 / x)
Cross-multiplying:
16x = 32,000
Dividing both sides by 16:
x = 2,000
Therefore, the best estimate for the walleye population is 2,000 (option B).