Question

The African elephant is an endangered species, largely because poachers (people who illegally hunt elephants) kill elephants to sell the ivory from their tusks. In the African country of Kenya in the last 10 years, the elephant population has dropped from 150,000 to 30,000. Calculate the average rate of change.

Answer 1

The average rate of change in Kenya's elephant population over the past 10 years is a decline of 12,000 elephants per year.

Step-by-step explanation:

The average rate of change in the elephant population in Kenya over the last 10 years can be calculated using the formula:

\(\text{Average rate of change} = \frac{\text{Change in value}}{\text{Change in time}}\)

.

Here, the change in elephant population (value) is \(150,000 - 30,000 = 120,000\) elephants, and the change in time is 10 years. Therefore, the average rate of change is \(\frac{120,000}{10} = 12,000\) elephants per year. This means that on average, the population declined by 12,000 elephants each year over that period.