Abstract
If a monitoring programme is being planned, there are five basic questions that need to be asked and answered. Each question is important and should be answered before any monitoring begins; they essentially form a sequential set because a satisfactory answer to any individual question cannot be given until all questions higher on the list have been answered. The questions are:
-
1.
Purpose: what is the aim of monitoring?
-
2.
Method: how can this aim be achieved?
-
3.
Analysis: how are the data, which will be collected periodically, to be handled?
-
4.
Interpretation: what might the data mean?
-
5.
Fulfilment: when will the aim have been achieved?
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Preview
Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.
References
Bailey, N.T.J. (1981) Statistical Methods in Biology (2nd edn), Hodder & Stoughton, London.
Campbell, R.C. (1974) Statistics for Biologists (2nd edn), Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.
Connor, E.F. and McCoy, E.D. (1979) The statistics and biology of the species-area relationship, American Naturalist, 113, 791–833.
Greig-Smith, P. (1983) Quantitative Plant Ecology (3rd edn), Blackwell, Oxford.
Magurran, A.E. (1988) Ecological Diversity and its Measurement, Croom Helm, London and Sidney.
Marchant, J. (1983) BTO Common Birds Census Instructions, British Trust for Ornithology, Tring.
North, P.M. (1977) A novel clustering method for estimating numbers of bird territories, Journal of the Royal Statistical Society, series C (Applied Statistics), 26, 149–155.
Parker, R.E. (1979) Introductory Statistics for Biology (2nd edn), Edward Arnold, Sevenoaks.
Taylor, L.R. (1986) Synoptic dynamics, migration and the Rothamsted Insect Survey, journal of Animal Ecology, 55, 1–38.
Usher, M.B. (1973) Biological Management and Conservation, Chapman and Hall, London.
Usher, M.B. (1985) Implications of species-area relationships for wildlife conservation, journal of Environmental Management, 21, 181–191.
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 1991 Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Usher, M.B. (1991). Scientific requirements of a monitoring programme. In: Goldsmith, B. (eds) Monitoring for Conservation and Ecology. Conservation Biology, vol 3. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-011-3086-8_2
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-011-3086-8_2
Publisher Name: Springer, Dordrecht
Print ISBN: 978-0-412-35600-1
Online ISBN: 978-94-011-3086-8
eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive