Answer:
Populations vary in their capacity to grow. The maximum rate at which a population can increase when resources are unlimited and environmental conditions are ideal is termed the population's biotic potential. Each species will have a different biotic potential due to variations in
the species' reproductive span (how long an individual is capable of reproducing)
the frequency of reproduction (how often an individual can reproduce)
"litter size" (how many offspring are born each time)
survival rate (how many offspring survive to reproductive age)
There are always limits to population growth in nature. Populations cannot grow exponentially indefinitely. Exploding populations always reach a size limit imposed by the shortage of one or more factors such as water, space, and nutrients or by adverse conditions such as disease, drought and temperature extremes. The factors which act jointly to limit a population's growth are termed the environmental resistance. The interplay of biotic potential and density-dependent environmental resistance keeps a population in balance.