Integrating multiple sign types to improve occupancy estimation for inconspicuous species.

ABSTRACT: Standard occupancy models enable unbiased estimation of occupancy by accounting for observation errors such as missed detections (false negatives) and, less commonly, incorrect detections (false positives). Occupancy models are fitted to data from repeated site visits in which surveyors record evidence of species presence. Use of indirect sign (e.g., scat, tracks) as evidence of presence can vastly improve survey efficiency for inconspicuous species but can also introduce additional sources of error. We developed a "multi-sign" occupancy approach to model the detection process separately for unique sign types and used this method to improve estimates of occupancy dynamics for an inconspicuous species, the American pika (Ochotona princeps). We investigated how estimates of pika occup

SUBMITTER: Goldman MR 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10183821 | biostudies-literature | 2023 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature