This introductory text on the design and analysis of sample surveys emphasizes the practical aspects of survey problems. It begins with brief chapters on the role of sample surveys in the modern world. Thereafter, each chapter introduces a sample survey design or estimation procedure by describing the pertinent practical problem. The authors describe the methodology proposed for solving the problem and provide the details of the estimation procedure, including a compact presentation of the formulas needed to complete the analysis. Then, a practical example is worked out in complete detail. At the end of each chapter, a wealth of exercises gives students ample opportunity to practice the techniques and stretch their grasp of ideas.

Elementary Survey Sampling

Terrestrial Plant Ecology.

Species Diversity in Ecological Communities: Historical and Geographical Perspectives.Robert E. Ricklefs , Dolph Schluter

Rocky Mountain form. They are readily distinguishable from zeZofes, the breeding bird of the Sierras. Moniaana is probably a winter visitant, therefore, to southeastern California from the northeastward. Sitta carolinensis aculeata. Slender-billed Nuthatch. Fairly common among the cottonwoods. Parus gambeli. Mountain Chickadee. Common in the brush and cottonwoods of the river bottom. Psaltriparus minimus. California Bush-Tit. Fairly eommon along the river. The specimens secured are quite like those of the southern coast district of California, and these in turn do not present tangible differences from Oregon skins of the same season. Auriparus flaviceps. Verdin. One specimen, secured by Dixon, was the only one met with. We found no mesquites in the vicinity of Victorville, and this evidently accounts for the absence of verdins. For farther down the Mojave River, at Barstow, both mesquites and verdins are plentiful. Regulus calendula cioeraceus. Ashy Kinglet. Fairly common, mostly along the wooded bottom lands. But several were met with among “sage” bushes out on the desert. All the skins secured show large size, and graynesss of coloration conspicuous anteriorly. (See CONDOK VI. Jan. rgo4, 25.) Myadestes townsendi. Townsend Solitaire. Solitaires were fairly numerous among the cottonwoods, where they were feeding on mistletoe berries. Hylocichla guttata nana. Dwarf Hermit I‘hrush. One specimen was taken by Pinger near the river. Merula migratoria propinqua. Western Robin. Fairly common among the cc ttonwoods, where they were feeding on the mistletoe berries. Sialia mexicana occidentalis. Western Bluebird. Abundant along thr river bottom where they were feeding largely on mistletoe berries. Sialia arctica. Mountain Bluebird. .‘I’wo flocks were encountered out on the desert quite a distance from the river.

The Sage Grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus)

Designing and implementing natural resource monitoring is a challenging endeavor undertaken by many agencies, NGOs, and citizen groups worldwide. Yet many monitoring programs fail to deliver useful information for a variety of administrative (staffing, documentation, and funding) or technical (sampling design and data analysis) reasons. Programs risk failure if they lack a clear motivating problem or question, explicit objectives linked to this problem or question, and a comprehensive conceptual model of the system under study. Designers must consider what “success” looks like from a resource management perspective, how desired outcomes translate to appropriate attributes to monitor, and how they will be measured. All such efforts should be filtered through the question “Why is this important?” Failing to address these considerations will produce a program that fails to deliver the desired information. We addressed these issues through creation of a “road map” for designing and implementing a monitoring program, synthesizing multiple aspects of a monitoring program into a single, overarching framework. The road map emphasizes linkages among core decisions to ensure alignment of all components, from problem framing through technical details of data collection and analysis, to program administration. Following this framework will help avoid common pitfalls, keep projects on track and budgets realistic, and aid in program evaluations. The road map has proved useful for monitoring by individuals and teams, those planning new monitoring, and those reviewing existing monitoring and for staff with a wide range of technical and scientific skills.

/pdf/a-road-map-for-designing-and-implementing-a-biological-16xnih9q1t.pdf

A road map for designing and implementing a biological monitoring program.

Information about status and trend of wildlife habitat is important for the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service to accomplish its mission and meet its legal requirements. As the steward of 193 million acres (ac) of Federal land, the Forest Service needs to evaluate the status of wildlife habitat and how it compares with desired conditions. Habitat monitoring programs provide information to meet the needs of the agency while fostering use of standardized, integrated approaches to produce robust knowledge. This technical guide provides current, scientifically credible, and practical protocols for the inventory and monitoring of terrestrial wildlife habitat. Protocols include data standards, data-collection methods, and methods for detecting and monitoring changes over time (Powell 2000). To our knowledge, this document is the first comprehensive guide to monitoring wildlife habitats. It serves a unique role by providing protocols specifically tailored to habitat monitoring, which is especially pertinent for the Forest Service, given its role in managing landscapes that support a wide diversity of taxa across the major biomes of North America.

https://www.fs.fed.us/research/publications/gtr/gtr_wo89/gtr_wo89.pdf

M.M. Rowland

Papers

A technical guide for monitoring wildlife habitat