Wildlife sampling methods Lecture 7 part 2 Flashcards
What can Survey results do?
Identify priority areas for species protection
Develop conservation management strategies
Help mitigate threats
What is Non-invasive monitoring ideal for?
Ideal for estimating abundance
Trends
What does invasive monitoring involve?
Trapping
Collaring
Disease transmission from humans
List the Non-invasive survey methods
Interviews
Index counts
Direct and indirect distance sampling methods
Capture-recapture methods (Inv or uninv)
Line/point and Strip/quadrat transects
List the aspects of Capture - recapture with camera traps
Effective tool for monitoring terrestrial mammals - precise density estimates
Enable population estimates- Social, demographic structures, movement patterns
Presence/absence of arboreal spp.- Monitoring tool
Effective at small spatial scales - 200km
Larger areas - transects or genetic censuses
What are the different scales of monitoring or assessing populations?
Site level
Protected area
Regional
National
Continental
Different methods are appropriate at different scales
What will you need to gather information on?
Survey species
Area to be covered - Behavioural, ecological characteristics of the target species. Ranging patterns, habitat requirement
Map of the survey area- vegetation, topographical hydrological
Previous data
Answer: Why, what, how, where, when, how often?
Why is it important to survey?
Reason is defined by survey objectives:
To estimate -
Distribution
Abundance
Population trend
Population structure
What questions can the information of spatial distribution of a species answer?
Can help answer questions on whether
A species. Is restricted to a particular area or habitat type
What is species occurrence influenced by?
Species Occurence is influenced by environmental, anthropogenic or temporal factors. For example: Seasonal variation in food abundances.
In relation to abundance, what different measures can be estimated?
Relative abundance
Index, encounters rate of signs, per unit distance - caution needed when interpreting these results between sites or habitats
Absolute abundance: Total number of individuals in the survey area
Density- Absolute abundance divided by the size of the survey area (Number of individuals per km2).
What is population trend for?
For informing and assessing effectiveness of conservation management decisions
Aimt to estimate trend over several years
Need to be repeated over a no. of years.
Explain population structure
Requires obtaining info on the age and sex classes of the individuals sampled
Maybe easy when surveying directly
More challenging when surveying for indirect signs - difficult to assign age and sex classes
Provides useful insights into reproductive health of a popln, immigration and emigration patterns, population trends and population viability
What does Ecological censuses investigate?
Site importance
Population size of a species
Habitat requirements of a sp.
Reason for species’ decline
Habitat management
Population dynamics
Give examples of Census
Ecological status of 6 parks in sandwell
BSc project - GCN poplns in pools in Fibbersley LNR
EIA for a development
BTO thrush survey
RSPB garden bird survey
Describe the importance of a site for a range of species
Provide a spp. List with a rough estimate of abundance
Use a wide range of different techniques
Sample in as many habitats as possible
Over a wide period of time
Over different weather conditions
Document the area searched