AS Ecological Monitoring Flashcards
Earthworm extraction methods
Soil flooding (with an irritant), soil pit extraction
Beating tray
A method of sampling invertebrates on the branches of bushes and small trees.
Belt transect
systematic sampling method that samples at intervals along strip that is marked across a habitat
Colonisation media
A method of demonstrating the presence of species by providing places that they can colonise which can then be checked.
DAFOR scale
A qualitative scale that judges the abundance of organisms. Initials stand for: Dominant, Abundant, Frequent, Occasional, Rare.
eDNA
eDNA is DNA detected in environmental samples such as water or soil that is used to confirm the presence of the species that produced it.
Kick sampling
A method of sampling aquatic invertebrates by disturbing the substrate.
Light traps
A method of sampling populations of night-flying organisms that are attracted to lights, especially moths.
Lincoln index
A catch, mark, release, recapture method of estimating animal populations.
Pitfall trap
A method of sampling populations of mobile animals that live on the soil surface, by collecting individuals that fall into traps set into the ground.
Quadrat
An area, usually square or circular, in which samples are taken. The size of the quadrats depends upon the organisms being studied.
Random sampling
a subset chosen from a larger set randomly, where all had an equal chance of being selected
Remote sensing
Any method of monitoring the features of a location from another location, normally used to describe surveys from satellites or high-flying aircraft.
Salinity
A measure of the salt concentration of a solution.
Satellite imagery
The collection of images using satellites: visible light, infra-red, microwaves etc.
Simpson’s index of biodiversity
A quantitative measure of the number of species and the abundance of each in an area.
Sonograms
A graph showing the volumes of sounds at different frequencies.
Standard deviation
A measure of the amount of variation relative to the mean
Standardised method
a method that allows comparison of results collected at different times, locations and by different researchers. All other variables should be controlled.
Surber sampler
A method of sampling aquatic invertebrates by disturbing the substrate that produces more reliable quantitative data than kick sampling.
Sweep nets
A method of sampling populations of flying insects and invertebrates among vegetation.
Systematic sampling
sampling a regular interval or spacing
Transect
A line or belt of sampling sites across an area.
Tüllgren funnel
A piece of equipment used to extract invertebrates from soil or leaf litter.
Turbidity
A measure of the level of suspended solids in water which affects the ability of light to penetrate the water.
Modern methods of monitoring organisms
motion sensitive cameras, CCTV, Image databases, DNA databases, Sonograms, GPS tracking, Satellites, Drones.
Indirect evidence of the presence of organisms
Nest, burrows, droppings, owl pellets, tracks, footprints, territorial markings
