Gauss´s Mortality Formula: A Demometric Analysis with Application to the Feral Camel Population in Central Australia

Abstract

A life table for the feral camel population in central Australia is constructed, using an extension of the Gompertz distribution, which was first proposed in a note by the famous mathematician Gauss. It is shown that under certain conditions some important life table parameters can be represented by simple formulae. The derived life table is then used to formulate both a continuous and a discrete model of the camel population. The models yield an annual growth rate of about 7%, a net reproduction rate of about 2.3, and a mean age of population of only 7 years.