A Comparison of Full-Station Visual and Transect-Based Methods of Conducting Habitat Surveys in Support of Habitat Suitability Index Models for Southern Ontario

Abstract

Abstract Over the years, ecologists have developed several models that reliably relate stream habitat and fish biomass. Under today's development pressures, managers are demanding that inputs to these models be objectively and repeatably applied by minimally trained crews and at low cost. In this study we compared how repeatable three techniques were at measuring the surficial area of morphological habitat features of wadable streams in southern Ontario. Two crews surveyed 20 sites twice with two survey designs (20 sites × 2 crews × 2 visits × 2 survey designs = 160 visits). For the first two visits, the crews surveyed the entire site (minimum length = 40 m, beginning and ending at a crossover) using a technique that entailed visually determining and then mapping the spatial extent occupied by morphological habitat units. For the next two visits, the crews applied the same visual classification system to a point–transect design (evenly spaced observation points located along evenly spaced transects placed...