Question

After an exponential increase, the population becomes stagnant. The growth curve is

• A. J-Shaped
• B. Circular
• C. Fluctuating
• D. S-Shaped

Answer 1

The correct option is D S-Shaped

When resources are limited in the environment, the population shows an S-shaped growth curve having three distinct phases:
●Lag phase: The population is getting adjusted to the environment.
●Log phase: The second part of the curve shows an exponential increase in the population as the resources are available.
There are three phases between the lag phase and the stationary phase are as follows:
○Positive acceleration phase: Limited growth in population.
○Exponential growth phase: Suddenly and very rapid growth of population.
○Negative acceleration phase: Decrease in the growth rate.
●Stationary phase: As population density increases, resources become a limiting factor resulting in growth slowing down. The population reaches the carrying capacity (K) of the environment.

After an exponential increase (log phase), the population becomes stagnant (stationary phase) because the carrying capacity of the environment is reached. Hence, the growth curve is S-shaped.

Final answer
(B) S-Shaped