Workshop de Análise e Manejo de Populações Animais

Chapada dos Guimarães, MT, 29 de Abril – 8 de Maio de 2007

Título Inglês: Parameter Estimation and Decision-Making for Conservation and Management of Animal Populations and Communities

Workshop Outline

Timing

8 am – 5 pm with a 2-hour lunch break.

Day 1 (April 29)

Arrival at Cuiabá airport.

Tansportation to and accomodation in Chapada dos Guimarães.

Day 2 (April 30)

Introduction to course

Overview of population ecology

Overview of models in science/management

Overview of population models

Population model exercises

Statistical inference (I): distributions, estimation, hypothesis testing, model selection, Bayesian updating.

Day 3 (May 1)

Statistical inference (II): survey sampling and its design features, some designs.

Abundance estimation (I): Overview and introduction to observation based methods (including exercise(s) for double-observer and time at detection approaches)

Abundance estimation (II): More observation-based methods – Distance sampling (including assumptions, survey design and intro to software)

Day 4 (May 2)

Abundance estimation (III): Distance sampling Analysis (with basic information and exercises, plus info on analyzing clustered populations and using covariates)

Abundance estimation (IV): Capture-based methods – intro and exercises: 2-sample and k-sample closed models.

Abundance estimation (V): Abundance and density estimation with capture-based methods other than standard closed models (trapping web, nested grid, catch-effort models, change-in ratio models)

Day 5 (May 3)

Vital rate estimation (I): Introduction and emphasis on detection probability (binomial survival model, study design and exercises)

Vital rate estimation (II): Open population capture-recapture models (single-age, multiple age; generalizalizations and restrictions; exercises)

Vital rate estimation (III): multistate models, exercises

Day 6 (May 4)

Vital rate estimation (IV): vital rates + abundance, seniority and population growth (temporal symmetry models and exercise)

Vital rate estimation (V): Pollock’s robust design with exercises.

Occupancy and occupancy dynamics (I): Single-season occupancy and study design with exercises.

Day 7 (May 5)

Occupancy and occupancy dynamics (II): Multiple season occupancy dynamics, study design, exercises.

Occupancy modeling (III): multi-species, multiple states

Species richness and community dynamics (I): Intro to species richness estimation with population-community analogy.

Species richness and community dynamics (II): Multiple season dynamics (with exercises)

Data-analytic project (students in groups with own data) (I)

Day 8 (May 6)

Conservation/Management in the face of uncertainty (I): Introduction to decision analysis

Conservation/Management in the face of uncertainty (II): Sources of uncertainty

Conservation/Management in the face of uncertainty (III): Adaptive management.

Data-analytic project (students in groups with own data) (II)

Day 9 (May 7)

Data-analytic project (students in groups with own data); finish projects, prepare powerpoints and make presentations (III)

Day 10 (May 8)

Departure from Cuiabá.