Several birds were sitting in the branches of a crape myrtle tree. There were three times more cardinals than bluebirds, but half as many swallows as bluebirds. If there were 2 swallows, what is the total number of birds in the crape myrtle tree? Let's think first. Chain of thought:
With half as many swallows as bluebirds, there are 2 * 2 = 4 bluebirds. With three times more cardinals than bluebirds, there are 3 * 4 = 12 cardinals,. If there were 2 swallows, then the total number of birds in the crape myrtle tree is 2 + 4 + 12 = 18 birds.
Therefore, the answer is 18.