Five fishermen live in a village and have no other employment or income-earning possibilities besides fishing. They each own a boat that is suitable for fishing but does not have any resale value. Fish are worth $5 per pound, and the marginal cost of operating the boat is $500 per month. They all fish a river next to the village. According to the following schedule, they have determined that when there are more of them out on the river fishing, they each catch fewer fish per month.

Boats	Fish Caught per Boat (pounds)
1	200
2	190
3	175
4	155
5	130

What is the optimal number of boats that should operate?

one

five

three

four

two