Optimising occupancy models and detection probability for conservation monitoring in a forest-dwelling small mammal

This is a Preprint and has not been peer reviewed. This is version 1 of this Preprint.

This Preprint has no visible version.

Download Preprint
Add a Comment

You must log in to post a comment.


Comments

There are no comments or no comments have been made public for this article.

Downloads

Download Preprint

Authors

Fraser John Combe, Jonathan S Ellis, Simone Bullion, Paul Chanin, Phillip C Wheater, Edwin Harris

Abstract

The ability to determine the survey effort required to detect species presence is critical for the conservation of populations in order to monitor changes in distribution or abundance, a challenge for rare and elusive species. While designing an effective population survey may be of concern to scientists, it may also be a legal requirement for protected species. We analysed how spatial and temporal variation in sampling effort impacts detection probability in the hazel dormouse (Muscardinus avellanarius), a small mammal that naturally occurs at low density in forest habitat. We used presence and absence data from 144 sites in England, UK. We found that detection probability was strongly affected by survey intensity, with a 37.5% increase in detection probability when sampling effort was increased from 16 to 50 nest tubes per site. We also show that detection probability is highly temporally dependent; monitoring early in the year results in low detection probability (21%-53%; April-June), whilst detection dramatically increased later in the year (89%; September). Our results suggest that variation in detection probability can be complex and influenced by effects at temporal and spatial scales, and by sampling effort. We show that sampling effort can be minimised depending on seasonal variation in detection probability, however this is likely to be species and method dependent.

DOI

https://doi.org/10.32942/osf.io/a57zm

Subjects

Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Forest Biology, Forest Sciences, Life Sciences, Other Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Population Biology

Keywords

Detection probability, dormouse, presence-absence, survey design

Dates

Published: 2019-08-12 18:27

License

CC-By Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International