Question

To monitor the population of mule deer, wildlife officials marked 20 mule deer. Later, they flew over the area and counted 400 mule deer, of which 10 were marked. To the nearest whole number, what is the best estimate for the mule deer population?

Answer 1

To estimate the mule deer population using the mark-recapture method, you can use the formula:

\[
\text{Population Estimate} = \frac{\text{Number of marked deer} \times \text{Total deer counted}}{\text{Number of marked deer recaptured}}
\]

In this case:

- Number of marked deer = 20
- Total deer counted = 400
- Number of marked deer recaptured = 10

Now plug the values into the formula:

\[
\text{Population Estimate} = \frac{20 \times 400}{10}
\]

Calculating this:

\[
\text{Population Estimate} = \frac{8000}{10} = 800
\]

Thus, the best estimate for the mule deer population is **800**.