Perceptions of Species Abundance, Distribution, and Diversity:Lessons from Four Decades of Sampling on a Government-Managed Reserve
/ We examined data relative to species abundance, distribution, anddiversity patterns of reptiles and amphibians to determine how perceptionschange over time and with level of sampling effort. Location data werecompiled on more than one million individual captures or observations of 98species during a 44-year study period on the US Department of Energy's(DOE) Savannah River Site National Environmental Research Park (SRS-NERP) inSouth Carolina. We suggest that perceptions of herpetofaunal speciesdiversity are strongly dependent on level of effort and that land managementdecisions based on short-term data bases for some faunal groups could resultin serious errors in environmental management. We provide evidence thatacquiring information on biodiversity distribution patterns is compatiblewith multiyear spatially extensive research programs and also provide aperspective of what might be achieved if long-term, coordinated researchefforts were instituted nationwide.To conduct biotic surveys on government-managed lands, we recommend revisionsin the methods used by government agencies to acquire and report biodiversitydata. We suggest that government and industry employees engaged inbiodiversity survey efforts develop proficiency in field identification forone or more major taxonomic groups and be encouraged to measure the status ofpopulations quantitatively with consistent and reliable methodologies. Wealso suggest that widespread academic cooperation in the dissemination ofinformation on regional patterns of biodiversity could result byestablishment of a peer-reviewed, scientifically rigorous journal concernedwith status and trends of the biota of the United States. KEY WORDS: Abundance; Amphibian; Biodiversity; Distribution; Landmanagement; Reptile
Gibbons
JW
Savannah River Ecology Laboratory, University ofGeorgia, Drawer E, Aiken, South Carolina 29802, USA
Burke
VJ
Lovich
JE
Semlitsch
RD
Tuberville
TD
Bodie
JR
Greene
JL
Niewiarowski
PH
Whiteman
HH
Scott
DE
Pechmann
JHK
Harrison
CR
Bennett
SH
Krenz
JD
Mills
MS
Buhlmann
KA
Lee
JR
Seigel
RA
Tucker
AD
Mills
TM
Lamb
T
Dorcas
ME
Congdon
JD
Smith
MH
Nelson
DH
Dietsch
MB
Hanlin
HG
Ott
JA
Karapatakis
DJ