Monitoring programs need to take into account imperfect species detectability
M. Kery, Hans Schmid
2004, Basic and Applied Ecology (5) 65-73
Biodiversiry monitoring is important to identify biological units in need of conservation and to check the effectiveness of conservation actions. Programs generally monitor species richness and its changes (trend). Usually, no correction is made for imperfect species detectability. Instead, it is assumed that each species present has...
Investigating species co-occurrence patterns when species are detected imperfectly
D.I. MacKenzie, L.L. Bailey, J.D. Nichols
2004, Journal of Animal Ecology (73) 546-555
1. Over the last 30 years there has been a great deal of interest in investigating patterns of species co-occurrence across a number of locations, which has led to the development of numerous methods to determine whether there is evidence that a particular pattern may not have occurred by random...
Tigers and their prey: Predicting carnivore densities from prey abundance
K. U. Karanth, J.D. Nichols, S. Kumar, W.A. Link, J.E. Hines
2004, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (101) 4854-4858
The goal of ecology is to understand interactions that determine the distribution and abundance of organisms. In principle, ecologists should be able to identify a small number of limiting resources for a species of interest, estimate densities of these resources at different locations across the landscape, and then use these...
Comparative dynamics of small mammal populations in treefall gaps and surrounding understorey within Amazonian rainforest
H. Beck, M.S. Gaines, J.E. Hines, J.D. Nichols
2004, Oikos (106) 27-38
Variation in food resource availability can have profound effects on habitat selection and dynamics of populations. Previous studies reported higher food resource availability and fruit removal in treefall gaps than in the understorey. Therefore, gaps have been considered 'keystone habitat' for Neotropical frugivore birds. Here we test if this prediction...
Passive tick surveillance, dog seropositivity, and incidence of human Lyme disease
Jaree L. Johnson, Howard S. Ginsberg, Elyes Zhioua, Ulysses G. Whitworth, Daniel Markowski, Kerwin E. Hyland, Renjie Hu
2004, Vector-Borne and Zoonotic Diseases (4) 137-142
Data on nymphal Ixodes scapularis ticks submitted by the public to the University of Rhode Island Tick Research Laboratory for testing from 1991 to 2000 were compared with human case data from the Rhode Island Department of Health to determine the efficacy of passive tick surveillance at assessing...
Native bees and plant pollination
H. S. Ginsberg
2004, Rhode Island Naturalist (11) 1-3
Bees are important pollinators, but evidence suggests that numbers of some species are declining. Decreases have been documented in the honey bee, Apis mellifera (which was introduced to North America), but there are no monitoring programs for the vast majority of native species, so we cannot be sure about...
Mortality of Mississippi Sandhill Crane chicks
Glenn H. Olsen
2004, Journal of Avian Medicine and Surgery (18) 269-272
Mississippi sandhill cranes (Grus canadensis pulla) are a highly endangered species that live in the wild in 1 county in Mississippi. As part of a large effort to restore these endangered cranes, we are conducting a project to look at the causes of mortality in crane chicks on the...
Testing life history predictions in a long-lived seabird: A population matrix approach with improved parameter estimation
P.F. Doherty Jr., E.A. Schreiber, J.D. Nichols, J.E. Hines, W.A. Link, G.A. Schenk, R.W. Schreiber
2004, Oikos (105) 606-618
Life history theory and associated empirical generalizations predict that population growth rate (λ) in long-lived animals should be most sensitive to adult survival; the rates to which λ is most sensitive should be those with the smallest temporal variances; and stochastic environmental events should most affect the rates to which...
Modeling abundance effects in distance sampling
J. Andrew Royle, D.K. Dawson, S. Bates
2004, Ecology (85) 1591-1597
Distance-sampling methods are commonly used in studies of animal populations to estimate population density. A common objective of such studies is to evaluate the relationship between abundance or density and covariates that describe animal habitat or other environmental influences. However, little attention has been focused on methods of modeling abundance...
Estimation of sex-specific survival from capture-recapture data when sex is not always known
J.D. Nichols, W. L. Kendall, J.E. Hines, J. A. Spendelow
2004, Ecology (85) 3192-3201
Many animals lack obvious sexual dimorphism, making assignment of sex difficult even for observed or captured animals. For many such species it is possible to assign sex with certainty only at some occasions; for example, when they exhibit certain types of behavior. A common approach to handling this situation in...
DENSITY: software for analysing capture-recapture data from passive detector arrays
M.G. Efford, D.K. Dawson, C.S. Robbins
2004, Animal Biodiversity and Conservation (27) 217-228
A general computer-intensive method is described for fitting spatial detection functions to capture-recapture data from arrays of passive detectors such as live traps and mist nets. The method is used to estimate the population density of 10 species of breeding birds sampled by mist-netting in deciduous forest at Patuxent...
Abundance estimation and conservation biology
J.D. Nichols, D.I. MacKenzie
2004, Animal Biodiversity and Conservation (27) 437-439
Abundance is the state variable of interest in most population–level ecological research and in most programs involving management and conservation of animal populations. Abundance is the single parameter of interest in capture–recapture models for closed populations (e.g., Darroch, 1958; Otis et al., 1978; Chao, 2001). The initial capture–recapture models developed...
Generalized estimators of avian abundance from count survey data
J. Andrew Royle
2004, Animal Biodiversity and Conservation (27) 375-386
I consider modeling avian abundance from spatially referenced bird count data collected according to common protocols such as capture?recapture, multiple observer, removal sampling and simple point counts. Small sample sizes and large numbers of parameters have motivated many analyses that disregard the spatial indexing of the data, and thus...
Hierarchial mark-recapture models: a framework for inference about demographic processes
W.A. Link, R. J. Barker
2004, Animal Biodiversity and Conservation (27) 441-449
The development of sophisticated mark-recapture models over the last four decades has provided fundamental tools for the study of wildlife populations, allowing reliable inference about population sizes and demographic rates based on clearly formulated models for the sampling processes. Mark-recapture models are now routinely described by large numbers of parameters....
Computing and software
Gary C. White, J.E. Hines
2004, Animal Biodiversity and Conservation (27) 175-176
The reality is that the statistical methods used for analysis of data depend upon the availability of software. Analysis of marked animal data is no different than the rest of the statistical field. The methods used for analysis are those that are available in reliable software packages. Thus, the critical...
Contaminant exposure and reproductive success of Ospreys (Pandion haliaetus) nesting in Chesapeake Bay regions of concern
Barnett A. Rattner, P. C. McGowan, N. H. Golden, Jeff S. Hatfield, P. C. Toschik, R.F. Lukei Jr., R. C. Hale, I. Schmitz-Afonso, C.P. Rice
2004, Archives of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology (47) 126-140
The Chesapeake Bay osprey population has more than doubled in size since restrictions were placed on the production and use of DDT and other toxic organochlorine contaminants in the 1970s. Ospreys are now nesting in the most highly polluted portions of the Bay. In 2000 and 2001, contaminant exposure and...
Assessing the fit of site-occupancy models
D.I. MacKenzie, L.L. Bailey
2004, Journal of Agricultural, Biological, and Environmental Statistics (9) 300-318
Few species are likely to be so evident that they will always be detected at a site when present. Recently a model has been developed that enables estimation of the proportion of area occupied, when the target species is not detected with certainty. Here we apply this modeling approach to...
Mute swans and their Chesapeake Bay habitats: proceedings of a symposium
Matthew C. Perry, editor(s)
2004, Information and Technology Report 2004-0005.
The symposium 'Mute Swans and their Chesapeake Bay Habitats,' held on June 7, 2001, provided a forum for biologists and managers to share research findings and management ideas concerning the exotic and invasive mute swan (Cygnus olar). This species has been increasing in population size and is considered by...
Population dynamics of the California Spotted Owl (Strix occidentalis occidentalis): a meta-analysis
A.B. Franklin, R. J. Gutierrez, J.D. Nichols, M.E. Seamans, Gary C. White, G.S. Zimmerman, J.E. Hines, T.E. Munton, W.S. LaHaye, J.A. Blakesley, G.N. Steger, B.R. Noon, D.W.H. Shaw, J.J. Keane, T. L. McDonald, S. Britting
2004, Ornithological Monographs No. 54.
We conducted a meta-analysis to provide a current assessment of the population characteristics of California Spotted Owls (Strix occidentalis occidentalis) resident on four study areas in the Sierra Nevada and one study area in southern California. Our meta-analysis followed rigorous a priori analysis protocols, which we derived through extensive...
Modeling survival and movement of resident giant Canada goose populations in the Atlantic flyway
M.W. Miller, W. L. Kendall, J.B. Hestbeck
Timothy J. Moser, Ricky D. Lien, Kurt C. VerCauterren, Kenneth F. Abraham, David E. Andersen, John G. Bruggink, John M. Coluccy, David A. Graber, James O. Leafloor, David R. Luukkonen, Robert E. Trost, editor(s)
2004, Book chapter, Proceedings of the 2003 International Canada Goose Symposium: papers, abstracts, and posters from the Symposium held in Madison, Wisconsin, 19-21 March 2003
Distribution of resident giant Canada geese (Branta canadensis maxima) has changed markedly in the Atlantic Flyway in recent decades. This change may be related to habitat variation or to changes in hunting regulations. We attempt to assess impacts of hunting regulations on survival, movement, and harvest rate of...
On the use of capture-recapture models in mist-net studies
W. L. Kendall, J.R. Sauer, J.D. Nichols, R. Pradel, J.E. Hines
C. John Ralph, Erica H. Dunn, editor(s)
2004, Book chapter, Monitoring bird populations with mist nets
Capture-recapture models provide a statistical framework for estimating population parameters from mist-net data. Although Cormack-Jolly-Seber and related models have recently been used to estimate survival rates of birds sampled with mist nets, we believe that the full potential for use of capture-recapture models has not been realized by many researchers...
Species Conservation and Management: Case Studies
H.R. Akcakaya, M.A. Burgman, O. Kindvall, C.C. Wood, P. Sjogren-Gulve, Jeff S. Hatfield, M.A. McCarthy
2004, Book
This edited volume is a collection of population and metapopulation models for a wide variety of species, including plants, invertebrates, fishes, amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals. Each chapter of the book describes the application of RAMAS GIS 4.0 to one species, with the aim of demonstrating how various life...
Biodiversity of Fungi : Inventory and Monitoring Methods
G.M. Mueller, G.F. Bills, M.S. Foster, editor(s)
2004, Book
Biodiversity of Fungi is essential for anyone collecting and/or monitoring any fungi. Fascinating and beautiful, fungi are vital components of nearly all ecosystems and impact human health and our economy in a myriad of ways. Standardized methods for documenting diversity and distribution have been lacking. An wealth...
Rhode Island Water Supply System Management Plan Database (WSSMP-Version 1.0)
Gregory E. Granato
2004, Open-File Report 2004-1231
In Rhode Island, the availability of water of sufficient quality and quantity to meet current and future environmental and economic needs is vital to life and the State's economy. Water suppliers, the Rhode Island Water Resources Board (RIWRB), and other State agencies responsible for water resources in Rhode Island need...
Report of the U.S. Geological Survey Lidar Workshop sponsored by the Land Remote Sensing Program and held in St. Petersburg, FL, November 2002
Michael Crane, Tonya Clayton, Ellen Raabe, Jason M. Stoker, Larry Handley, Gerald W. Bawden, Karen Morgan, Vivian R. Queija
2004, Open-File Report 2004-1456
The first United States Geological Survey (USGS) Light Detection And Ranging (lidar) Workshop was held November 20-22, 2002 in St. Petersburg, Florida to bring together scientists and managers from across the agency. The workshop agenda focused on six themes: 1) current and future lidar technologies, 2) lidar applications within USGS...
