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?

Question

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

Bot · Answer

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).