Monitoring Plant and Animal Populations

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.

Preface vii Chapter 1 Introduction to Monitoring 1 Chapter 2 Monitoring Overview 11 Chapter 3 Selecting Among Priorities 21 Chapter 4 Qualitative Techniques For Monitoring 37 Chapter 5 General Field Techniques 49 Chapter 6 Data Collection and Data Management 65 Chapter 7 Basic Principles of Sampling 75 Chapter 8 Sampling Design 101 Chapter 9 Statistical Analysis 149 Chapter 10 Analysis of Trends 185 Chapter 11 Selecting Random Samples 195 Chapter 12 Field Techniques For Measuring Vegetation 205 Chapter 13 Specialized Sampling Methods and Field Techniques For Animals 231 Chapter 14 Objectives 247 Chapter 15 Communication and Monitoring Plans 271 Appendix I: Monitoring Communities 283 Appendix II: Sample Size Equations 299 Appendix III: Confidence Interval Equations 319 Appendix IV: Sample Size and Confidence Intervals For Complex Sampling Designs 329 Literature Cited 339 Index 353