Monitoring Plant and Animal Populations: A Handbook for Field Biologists

by Caryl L. Elzinga; Daniel W. Salzer; John W. Willoughby; James P. Gibbs (State Univ. of New York)

• ISBN13: 9781444313109
• ISBN10: 144431310X
• Format: eBook
• Copyright: 2009-04-01
• Publisher: Wiley-Blackwell

Summary

Monitoring Plant and Animal Populations offers an overview of population monitoring issues that is accessible to the typical field biologist and land managers with a modest statistical background. The text includes concrete guidelines for ecologists to follow to design a statistically defensible monitoring program. User-friendly, practical guide, written in a highly readable format. The authors provide an interdisciplinary scope to address the current, widespread interest in monitoring in many environmental fields, including pure and applied ecology, conservation biology, and wildlife management. Emphasizes the role of monitoring in adaptive management. Defines important terminology and contrasts monitoring with other data-collection activities. Covers the applicable principles of sampling and shows how to design a monitoring project. Provides a step-by-step overview of the monitoring process, illustrated by flow charts and references. The authors also offer guidelines for analyzing and interpreting monitoring data. Illustrates the foundation of management objectives and describes their components, types, and development. Describes common field techniques for measuring important attributes of animal and plant populations. Reviews different methods for recording monitoring data in the field, managing the data, and communicating data to policy makers.

Table of Contents

Preface

Introduction To Monitoring

Monitoring Overview

Selecting Among Priorities

Qualitative Techniques For Monitoring

General Field Techniques

Data Collection And Data Management

Basic Principles Of Sampling

Sampling Design

Statistical Analysis

Analysis Of Trends

Selecting Random Samples

Field Techniques For Measuring Vegetation

Specialized Sampling Methods And Field Techniques For Animals

Objectives

Communication And Monitoring Plans

Monitoring Communities

Sample Size Equations

Confidence Interval Equations

Sample Size And Confidence Intervals For Complex Sampling Designs

Literature Cited

Index References

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