title: Developing and enhancing biodiversity monitoring programmes: a collaborative assessment of priorities.
abstract: Biodiversity is changing at unprecedented rates, and it is increasingly important that these changes are quantified through monitoring programmes. Previous recommendations for developing or enhancing these programmes focus either on the end goals, that is the intended use of the data, or on how these goals are achieved, for example through volunteer involvement in citizen science, but not both. These recommendations are rarely prioritized.We used a collaborative approach, involving 52 experts in biodiversity monitoring in the UK, to develop a list of attributes of relevance to any biodiversity monitoring programme and to order these attributes by their priority. We also ranked the attributes according to their importance in monitoring biodiversity in the UK. Experts involved included data users, funders, programme organizers and participants in data collection. They covered expertise in a wide range of taxa.We developed a final list of 25 attributes of biodiversity monitoring schemes, ordered from the most elemental (those essential for monitoring schemes; e.g. articulate the objectives and gain sufficient participants) to the most aspirational (e.g. electronic data capture in the field, reporting change annually). This ordered list is a practical framework which can be used to support the development of monitoring programmes.People's ranking of attributes revealed a difference between those who considered attributes with benefits to end users to be most important (e.g. people from governmental organizations) and those who considered attributes with greatest benefit to participants to be most important (e.g. people involved with volunteer biological recording schemes). This reveals a distinction between focussing on aims and the pragmatism in achieving those aims.Synthesis and applications. The ordered list of attributes developed in this study will assist in prioritizing resources to develop biodiversity monitoring programmes (including citizen science). The potential conflict between end users of data and participants in data collection that we discovered should be addressed by involving the diversity of stakeholders at all stages of programme development. This will maximize the chance of successfully achieving the goals of biodiversity monitoring programmes.
authors.affiliation: Centre for Ecology & Hydrology Maclean Building, Benson Lane, Crowmarsh Gifford Wallingford, Oxfordshire OX10 8BB UK.
authors.forename: Michael J O
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Pocock
authors.affiliation: British Trust for Ornithology The Nunnery, Thetford Norfolk IP24 2PU UK.
authors.forename: Stuart E
authors.initials: SE
authors.lastname: Newson
authors.affiliation: British Trust for Ornithology The Nunnery, Thetford Norfolk IP24 2PU UK.
authors.forename: Ian G
authors.initials: IG
authors.lastname: Henderson
authors.affiliation: Centre for Ecology & Hydrology Maclean Building, Benson Lane, Crowmarsh Gifford Wallingford, Oxfordshire OX10 8BB UK.
authors.forename: Jodey
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authors.lastname: Peyton
authors.affiliation: Conservation Science Group Department of Zoology University of Cambridge Cambridge CB2 3EJ UK.
authors.forename: William J
authors.initials: WJ
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authors.affiliation: British Trust for Ornithology The Nunnery, Thetford Norfolk IP24 2PU UK.
authors.forename: David G
authors.initials: DG
authors.lastname: Noble
authors.affiliation: JNCC Monkstone House, City Road Peterborough, Cambridgeshire PE1 1JY UK.
authors.forename: Stuart G
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authors.affiliation: Centre for Ecology & Hydrology Maclean Building, Benson Lane, Crowmarsh Gifford Wallingford, Oxfordshire OX10 8BB UK.
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authors.affiliation: Freshwater Habitats Trust Bury Knowle House, North Place Headington, Oxford OX3 9HY UK.
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authors.lastname: Biggs
authors.affiliation: Butterfly Conservation Manor Yard, East Lulworth Wareham, Dorset BH20 5QP UK.
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authors.lastname: Brereton
authors.affiliation: National Trust Heelis, Kemble Drive Swindon, Wiltshire SN2 2NA UK.
authors.forename: David J
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authors.lastname: Bullock
authors.affiliation: CREEM University of St Andrews The Observatory, Buchanan Gardens St Andrews, Fife KY16 9LZ UK.
authors.forename: Stephen T
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authors.lastname: Buckland
authors.affiliation: Leaside Carron Lane Midhurst, West Sussex GU29 9LB UK.
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authors.affiliation: RSPB Centre for Conservation Science The Lodge Sandy, Bedfordshire SG19 2DL UK.
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authors.affiliation: Department of Environment, Earth and Ecosystems The Open University Walton Hall Milton Keynes MK7 6AA UK.
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authors.affiliation: 11 Chaucer Road Cambridge, Cambridgeshire CB2 7EB UK.
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authors.affiliation: Chrysomelid Recording Scheme 28 St. Mary's Road Eastleigh, Hampshire SO50 6BP UK.
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authors.affiliation: Amphibian and Reptile Groups of UK (ARGUK) & Amphibian and Reptile Conservation (ARC) 655A Christchurch Road, Boscombe Bournemouth, Dorset BH1 4AP UK.
authors.forename: Angela M
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authors.affiliation: Scottish Natural Heritage Silvan House, 231 Corstorphine Road Edinburgh EH12 7AT UK.
authors.forename: Edward C
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authors.affiliation: Oxford University Museum of Natural History Parks Road Oxford, Oxfordshire OX1 3PW UK.
authors.forename: Darren J
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authors.affiliation: The Wildlife Trusts The Kiln, Waterside, Mather Road Newark, Nottinghamshire NG24 1WT UK.
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authors.affiliation: Medical Entomology Group Public Health England Porton Down Salisbury, Wiltshire SP4 0JG UK.
authors.forename: Jolyon M
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authors.affiliation: Bumblebee Conservation Trust School of Biological and Environmental Science University of Stirling Stirling FK9 4LA UK.
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authors.lastname: O'Mahony
authors.affiliation: The Mammal Society 3 The Carronades, New Road Southampton, Hampshire SO14 0AA UK.
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authors.lastname: Pacheco
authors.affiliation: Natural England Suite D, Unex House, Bourges Boulevard Peterborough PE1 1NG UK.
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authors.affiliation: British Dragonfly Society c/o Natural England Parkside Court, Hall Park Way Telford, Shropshire TF3 4LR UK.
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authors.lastname: Prentice
authors.affiliation: JNCC Monkstone House, City Road Peterborough, Cambridgeshire PE1 1JY UK.
authors.forename: Deborah A
authors.initials: DA
authors.lastname: Procter
authors.affiliation: Centre for Ecology & Hydrology Maclean Building, Benson Lane, Crowmarsh Gifford Wallingford, Oxfordshire OX10 8BB UK.
authors.forename: Helen E
authors.initials: HE
authors.lastname: Roy
authors.affiliation: Plantlife International 14 Rollestone Street Salisbury SP1 1DX UK.
authors.forename: Sue E
authors.initials: SE
authors.lastname: Southway
authors.affiliation: Rothamsted Insect Survey Department of Agroecology Rothamsted Research Harpenden, Hertfordshire AL5 2JQ UK.
authors.forename: Chris R
authors.initials: CR
authors.lastname: Shortall
authors.affiliation: School of Life Sciences University of Sussex Falmer, Brighton Sussex BN1 9QG UK.
authors.forename: Alan J A
authors.initials: AJ
authors.lastname: Stewart
authors.affiliation: People's Trust for Endangered Species 15 Cloisters House, 8 Battersea Park Road London W8 4BG UK.
authors.forename: David E
authors.initials: DE
authors.lastname: Wembridge
authors.affiliation: Northern Ireland Environment Agency Klondyke Building, Cromac Avenue Belfast County Antrim BT7 2JA UK.
authors.forename: Mark A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Wright
authors.affiliation: Centre for Ecology & Hydrology Maclean Building, Benson Lane, Crowmarsh Gifford Wallingford, Oxfordshire OX10 8BB UK.
authors.forename: David B
authors.initials: DB
authors.lastname: Roy
keywords: biodiversity; citizen science; monitoring; participatory monitoring; surveillance; survey; volunteer