During which bacterial growth phase is the rate of growth equal to the rate of death?

• A. Lag
• B. Log
• C. Stationary
• D. Death

Answer: (C)

In this phase, the population stays constant because new cells are produced at the same rate that cells die. This happens after nutrients become limited and waste products build up, slowing cell division while stress causes some cells to die. The balance between growth and death means the overall cell count doesn’t change.

For contrast: during the lag phase, cells are adapting to the environment and divide slowly or not at all; in the log (exponential) phase, cells divide rapidly and growth far outpaces death; in the death phase, death exceeds growth as conditions deteriorate and nutrients are exhausted.