What is the term used to describe the maximum number of individuals of a species that an environment can support indefinitely?

Step 1: Analyze the question The question asks for the term for the maximum number of individuals of a species that an environment can support indefinitely (sustainably over time).

Step 2: Explain the concept Every habitat has limited resources such as food, water, shelter and space. A population can grow only until these resources start to run short. The largest population size the environment can sustain over a long period, without degrading the habitat, is called its carrying capacity (often written as K).

Step 3: Check each option

• A. Ecological niche: This is the role or position of a species in its ecosystem, covering what it eats, where it lives and how it interacts with others. It is not a number of individuals.
• B. Limiting factor: This is a resource or condition, such as food, water or predation, that restricts population growth. It is a cause of the limit, not the limit itself.
• C. Carrying capacity: This is the maximum population size an environment can support indefinitely. It matches the definition exactly.
• D. Density-dependent factor: This is a factor whose effect changes with population density, such as disease, competition and predation. It helps regulate the population but is not the maximum number.

Step 4: Answer The correct option is C. Carrying capacity.

Exam tip: Link the keywords to the terms.

• "Maximum number supported" → carrying capacity
• "Role in the ecosystem" → niche
• "Restricts growth" → limiting factor
• "Effect depends on crowding" → density-dependent factor