Journal article
Integrating variability in detection probabilities when designing wildlife surveys: A case study of amphibians from south-eastern Australia
S Canessa, GW Heard, KM Parris, MA McCarthy
Biodiversity and Conservation | SPRINGER | Published : 2012
Abstract
Occupancy-based monitoring programs rely on survey data to infer presence or absence of the target species. However, species may occupy a site and go undetected, leading to erroneous inference of absence ('false absence'). If detectability is influenced by the time of year or weather conditions, survey protocols can be adjusted to minimize the chance of false absences. In this study, detection probabilities for three amphibian species from south-eastern Australia were modelled using a Bayesian approach. For aural surveys, we compared basic models, which only included effects of survey date, duration and time of day on detection, to models including additional effects of weather. Model select..
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Awarded by Department of Sustainability and Environment
Funding Acknowledgements
Data for the 2006-2007 season were collected in collaboration with Michael Scroggie and Brian Malone. The collection of these data was made possible by funding from the Department of Sustainability of Environment, the Growling Grass Frog Trust Fund (consisting of DSE, Australian Gas Ltd. and Friends of Merri Creek) and La Trobe University. It was undertaken according to the provisions of the Victorian Wildlife Act 1975 (Research Permit No. 10001816). Data for the 2009 season were collected in collaboration with Blaire Dobiecki and a number of field assistants. Data collection was made possible by funding from the University of Melbourne and was approved from the Animal Ethics Committee of the University of Melbourne (project ID 0911299.1). Manuscript preparation was supported by an Australian Research Council Linkage Grant (LP0990161) with the Australian Research Centre for Urban Ecology, Growling Grass Frog Trust Fund, Melbourne Museum, Melbourne Water, Parks Victoria and Victorian Department of Sustainability and Environment. Helpful comments were received from the editor and two anonymous referees.