Double-observer approach with camera traps can correct imperfect detection and improve the accuracy of density estimation of unmarked animal populations.

ABSTRACT: Camera traps are a powerful tool for wildlife surveys. However, camera traps may not always detect animals passing in front. This constraint may create a substantial bias in estimating critical parameters such as the density of unmarked populations. We proposed the 'double-observer approach' with camera traps to counter the constraint, which involves setting up a paired camera trap at a station and correcting imperfect detection with a reformulated hierarchical capture-recapture model for stratified populations. We performed simulations to evaluate this approach's reliability and determine how to obtain desirable data for this approach. We then applied it to 12 mammals in Japan and Cameroon. The results showed that the model assuming a beta-binomial distribution as detection processes coul

SUBMITTER: Nakashima Y 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8821540 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature