Which term describes population growth that starts fast and then levels off?

• A. Log growth
• B. Exponential growth
• C. Linear growth
• D. Logistic growth

Answer: (A)

When a population grows quickly at first but then slows and settles, it’s because resources like food and space become limited. This creates a carrying capacity for the environment, and the growth pattern levels off as the population approaches that limit. This is known as logistic growth. The early rapid increase followed by a flattening S-shaped curve reflects how birth rates drop or deaths rise as competition intensifies, keeping the population near the carrying capacity. The math dN/dt = rN(1 − N/K) captures this, with r as the intrinsic growth rate and K as carrying capacity. Exponential growth would keep accelerating without leveling off, linear growth increases by a constant amount each time, and the term “log growth” isn’t the standard model used to describe populations that stabilize due to resource limits. So the best term is logistic growth.