Ecological Sampling

Measuring biotic components of a

system
 Ecological Sampling

 What is a sample?
 “A portion, piece, or segment that is representative
of a whole”
 Why do we sample?
 it is usually impossible to measure the whole
 One big assumption…

 That the sample is representative of the

whole
 It is necessary to take enough samples so
that an accurate representation is obtained
 It is important to avoid bias when sampling
 Sampling Methods
 Transects and Quadrants
 Plants and Non-motile animals
 Lincoln Index
 Capture –Mark- Recapture
 Small animals

 Aerial observations
 Large trees and animals
 Sampling along Transects

 Samples taken at fixed intervals

 Set up along an environmental gradient (e.g.
high to low on a mountain)
 Line transect method

 A measured line laid across the area in the

direction of the environmental gradient
 All species touching the line are be recorded
along the whole length of the line or at
specific points along the line
 Measures presence or absence of species
 Belt transect method

 Transect line is laid out and a quadrant is

placed at each survey interval
 Samples are identified and abundance is
estimated
 Animals are collected
 For plants an percent coverage is estimated
 Data collection should be completed by an
individual as estimates can vary person to
person
 Quadrats

 Used to measure coverage and abundance of

plants or animals
 A grid of known size is laid out and all the
organisms within each square are counted.
 Lincoln Index

 Capture-Mark-Recapture
 Animals are captured,counted, tagged and
released.
 After a period of time another capture occurs.
 Previously tagged animals are counted and
unmarked organisms are marked.
 Abundance is calculated using the following
formula: n1 x n2 n =total marked after catch 1
1
n3 n2=total marked after catch 2
n3=total caught in catch 2 but
marked in catch 1
 Measurements

 Sampling methods measure

 Density
 Coverage
 Frequency
 Biomass
 Diversity
 Density (D)

 The number of individuals per unit area

in =number of individuals for
 D=ni/A species i
 Eg. 10 dandelions/m2 A=the area sampled (could
 Relative density i (Rdi)be the volume V)
 The Density of species i, Di, Divided by the sum of
all the densities of the other species sampled
 Rdi=Di/S D
 Eg. 10/5+8+16
 Coverage (C)

 The proportion of ground that is occupied or

area covered by the plant/species
 Ci=ai/A ai=the area covered by
species i
 Relative coverage
A=the total area
 The Coverage of species 1, Ci, divided by the sum
total of the coverage of the other species sampled
 Frequency (f)

 The number of times a given event occurs

 Eg. the number of quadrants that contain maple
trees as a ration of all the quadrants
 fi=ji/k ji=number of quadrants with
species i
 Relative frequency k=total number of quadrants
 The frequency of species i relative to the sum total
of the frequencies of the other species found
 Biomass (B)

 Can be calculated by measuring the mass of

the individuals per unit area
 B= S W/A
 More appropriate measure than density or
frequency when
 Number of individuals in hard to determine
 Photosynthesis and carbon fixation, energy and nutrient
transfer are more dependent upon biomass than the total
number of individuals
 Biomass Measurement
methods
 Fresh or wet weight
 Used when organisms are alive
 Dry weight
 Used when the water content varies greatly
 Oven dry at 105oC to remove water
 Ash-Free Weight
 Used when inorganic content varies greatly
 Oxidize at 500oC until only inorganic ash remains
 Diversity

 The measure of variety of an ecosystem

 Consists of 2 components
 The number of different species or the richness of
species in a specific area
 The relative abundance of the individuals of each
species in a specific area
 Simpson's Diversity (D)
 Measures species richness
D=N(N-1) D=Diversity

S n(n-1)
N=total number of organisms of all
species found
n=number of individuals of a
particular species
 If D is high the area may be a stable ancient
site.
 Low D may suggest pollution, recent
colonization, or agricultural management