there are 43 marked whales

Question

there are 371 whales counted
and 33 marked whales counted
what would be the best estimate for the population

Answer 1

To estimate the population, we can use the concept of a capture-recapture study. This method assumes that the ratio of marked whales to the total number of whales in the population is similar to the ratio of marked whales to the total number of whales captured and counted.

Based on the information given:
Number of marked whales = 43
Number of whales counted = 371
Number of marked whales counted = 33

We can set up the proportion:
(Number of marked whales) / (Number of whales counted) = (Number of marked whales counted) / Population

43 / 371 = 33 / Population

Now, we can solve the proportion to find the estimated population:

(43 / 371) * Population = 33

Population = (33 * 371) / 43

Population ≈ 283.1

Therefore, the best estimate for the population of whales would be approximately 283.