Wildlife Techniques Research Questions and Methods Notes

Key Questions in Wildlife Techniques & Associated Methods

Importance of Method Selection

• Different research questions require tailored methods.
• Not all methods will yield suitable or accurate data for every question.

Common Research Questions and Methods

What is the area of an animal’s home range?

• Techniques:
  • Capture and mark animals using transmitters to track locations over time.
  • Use natural marks or genetic tags for easier tracking without repeated capture (e.g., camera traps, fecal DNA from scat).
• Limitations:
  • Limited by the number of individuals with collars; may not represent the entire population.
  • Requires careful study design for accurate data collection.

What habitat types does an animal use or require?

• Techniques:
  • Capture and mark animals using transmitters; overlay data with habitat information.
  • Occupancy models using camera traps or acoustic recorders to identify habitat selection and use.
• Limitations:
  • Sample size limited to captured individuals; may not reflect overall habitat use.
  • Coarse scale of occupancy models may not clearly indicate habitat preferences.

What is the survival rate and what factors affect survival in a population?

• Techniques:
  • Capture and mark animals; investigate mortality causes; conduct active searches (e.g., roadkill surveys).
• Limitations:
  • Only detects mortality factors from captured individuals; might not represent total population mortality.
  • Potential bias due to missed mortalities and uneven detection of causes.

What is apparent survival?

• Techniques:
  • Use of mark-recapture or resight methods to estimate population retention.
• Limitations:
  • Cannot distinguish between mortality and emigration from the population.

What is recruitment into a population and what factors affect recruitment?

• Techniques:
  • Monitor nest survival or litter sizes; mark and resight young animals to estimate future adult numbers.
• Limitations:
  • Needs multiple years of monitoring to accurately gauge maturation to adulthood.

How to estimate population abundance or density?

• Techniques:
  • Capture, mark, and recapture methods to assess detection bias and estimate abundance.
  • Use camera traps to identify individuals and non-invasive genetic sampling.
• Limitations:
  • Capturing methods may be invasive; detection bias depending on capture location.
  • Not all individuals may exhibit natural markings; rare species detection can be challenging.

How is animal activity different?

• Techniques:
  • Fit animals with transmitters to monitor movements; conduct visual observations to create an activity budget.
• Limitations:
  • Capture techniques may be invasive; sensors might alter natural behavior.
  • The presence of observers can influence animal responses.

Does an animal occur in this area?

• Techniques:
  • Conduct intensive surveys using camera traps, auditory detectors, distinctive signs, and local ecological knowledge interviews.
• Limitations:
  • Cryptic species are difficult to detect; presence cannot always be confirmed without capture.
  • Observer error can misidentify species’ presence based on historical rather than contemporary data.