Studying a Species in Decline: Gopher Tortoises and the Dilemma of "Correction Factors"
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
12-1992
Keywords
Burrow, Correction factor, Gopher tortoise, Gopherus Polyphemus, Habitat, Population estimates
Abstract
Numbers of gopher tortoises are declining throughout the southeastern United States, largely because of loss of habitat. Widespread monitoring of population sizes for gopher tortoises usually is done indirectly, by examining the burrows that tortoises construct. Indirect monitoring requires use of a correction factor, to relate numbers of burrows to numbers of tortoises. We demonstrate that the standard correction factor overestimates the number of tortoises in 22 of the 26 cases in our sample and that the relationship between numbers of burrows and numbers of tortoises differs among types of habitats. Using both published data and data from our own studies, we suggest that an accurate assessment of active burrows is a reliable way to relate numbers of burrows to numbers of tortoises.
Was this content written or created while at USF?
Yes
Citation / Publisher Attribution
Herpetologica, v. 48, issue 4, p. 402-407
Scholar Commons Citation
McCoy, Earl D. and Mushinsky, Henry R., "Studying a Species in Decline: Gopher Tortoises and the Dilemma of "Correction Factors"" (1992). Integrative Biology Faculty and Staff Publications. 212.
https://digitalcommons.usf.edu/bin_facpub/212
