Emu Population Isabella DeYoung and Cole Matheny

As time goes on, more emus breed and as such the population would grow at an increasing rate until resources begin to run out. As the resources are used, a carrying capacity is introduced and the population graph levels out near the top. This specific growth chart is a logistic growth graph, and it begins with a slow start and then a rapid increase rate. This type of population graph is formed when the population cannot find enough resources to support a larger population than what they already have.
Emus may face a barrage of parasites on their population, from seemingly harmless to lethal parasites, which will lead to a change in the population. Another likely density-dependent factor that may come their way is predation, as they live in Australia and everything is trying to kill you. These factors will always decrease the population, either by a drastic amount or a small difference.
Two density-independent factors that may greatly affect the emus are drought and habitat disruption. A drought will starve the environment and therefore the food they survive on, greatly decreasing their food source and not allowing as many to survive. Habitat disruption will do the same thing, breaking away their food sources and not allowing them to get as much food as they require to survive.
The emu population could be affected by immigration, as if more emus migrate from another part of the country to join another emu habitat, the population in that habitat will experience a sudden jump. Immigration to another emu habitat may occur if the new habitat has plentiful resources, and there is enough space for the new emus to live. The same goes for if the migration occurs at the end of the season again, but this time the emus emigrate back to their original habitat, this would suddenly decrease the population of the area. Emigration back to the original emu habitat would occur if their previous habitat ran out of resources to live off of.
Emu births do not take incredibly long, and as such the population should have a sharp increase two months after breeding season, but at the sudden increase in population another thing may follow. Along with a sudden increase in the population, the resources that emus survive on may plummet. Emu deaths are even throughout the year, and as such the population experiences a slow decline until breeding season. However, with the decline of the population more resources become available to the surviving emus, allowing them to survive for a longer period of time.

Credits:

Created with images by NH53 - "Emu" • maraisea - "emu bird flightless" • Janus Serendipity - "emu (7)" • PublicDomainPictures - "emu ostrich cassowary" • Brett Jordan - "Emus"

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