Anna Swenson

Mrs. Norris
AP Environmental Science
10 September 2014
Something Fishy Lab
Is tagging animals a reliable way to measure population? To determine the population of,
for example, fish one could not capture all the fish in a lake or ocean at once to gather data. A
system has to be established to estimate a population of species. Tagging has been done before
on fish and butterflies specifically monarchs. The tags enable biologists to be able to monitor
migration patterns and health of species. This information can be recorded to compare among
other species. If a group of biologists measure population using the tag and release method, then
the percent error should be around 20%.
To perform this experiment one needs a brown paper bag, white beans, brown beans and
a calculator. The brown bag should contain and unknown amount of white beans. First one must
grab a handful of the white beans out of the bag without looking. Secondly count the amount of
white beans and replace them with the same amount of brown beans. The brown beans represent
the tagged fish. The white fish represent the general population of fish. Then shake the bag and
grab another handful of fish. Count the number of tagged fish (brown beans) and the total
number of fish. Repeat this step 19 more times. Then for each sample divide the number of
tagged fish by the total sample size to find the percent tagged. Then add all of the percent tagged
throughout the samples and divide that number by twenty to get the mean percent tagged.
Data
Sample # # of Tagged Fish in
Sample
Total Sample Size Percent Tagged in
Sample
1 0 22 0%
2 6 26 23%
3 5 26 19%
4 4 30 13.3%
5 7 27 26%
6 6 28 21%
7 8 32 25%
8 5 42 12%
9 2 23 9%
10 4 18 22%
11 5 33 15%
12 4 33 12%
13 4 30 13%
14 5 34 15%
15 3 17 18%
16 4 21 19%
17 6 30 20%
18 9 31 29%
19 5 28 18%
20 7 32 22%
Mean Percentage Tagged: 17.6%

After twenty samples of fish, the mean percentage tagged was 17.6%. By using a formula
of (number of original tagged/Mean of the Samples percent) x 100 gave us and estimation of
about 125 fish in the population. After doing the percent error calculation there was about a 19%
error. After counting 155 in the bag, the original calculated population was off by 30 fish. This
percent error is not very high leading one to believe it isnt a bad way of measuring population.
This experiment would work better if the population was larger and the experiment was repeated
more. This method would be best used for a biologist as an approximate number to compare
among populations of the same species in other areas.

Works Cited
"Writing Lab Reports and Scientific Papers." Writing Lab Reports and Scientific Papers. Iowa
State University, n.d. Web. 03 Sept. 2014.
<http://www.mhhe.com/biosci/genbio/maderinquiry/writing.html>.