Project Surveying Methodology

My Sidmouth Nature project is what I would describe as structured but informal.  By that I mean that I follow a set methodology for collecting and processing data but where and when I collect that data is flexible and is done when the weather is appropriate and I have the time available.

The structure has these founding principles:

Sites of natural Interest
The focus of the project is on a number of what I consider to be ‘sites of natural interest’; this is NOT a formal designation, just a term I use to describe the chosen sites. I have identified fifty such sites in the Sidmouth area and they range from formally established nature reserves to verges and accessible spaces along roads and paths.

My plan is to visit as many of these sites as I can in every month from March to October and then once during the period from November to February. This is not totally possible as there are a small number of sites that are difficult for me to access or where there is no public access I can only visit when they are open to visits.

Transects
On each visit to a site I tend to follow the same route or ‘transect’. This provides consistency of observations but may, of course, mean some species present are not visible from my route. It also means that I am recording ‘what I see’ rather than taking an in depth look for species to see and identify. In general, I am only recording high visibility species, particularly insect species.

Transect recording is an established ‘scientific’ technique for recording, it is certainly used in butterfly recording surveys. It would be impossible to survey the number of sites I aim to visit, and the number of times I am to visit each site, to use any other survey method. Use of traps, monitors, nets, quadrants and so on provide much more detailed information but they are not appropriate for what I am hoping to achieve. I do not have the appropriate equipment, training or time to use any other survey method.

For the purposes of this project this more ‘casual’ transect approach suits my level of experience and my level of interest. This level of data is almost certainly sufficient not just for my purposes but is likely to provide adequate answers to questions others may have about species seen on sites when out walking.

100% Lists
On each site transect visit I attempt to produce a complete list of species observed so that common and familiar species are recorded as well as 'interesting' ones. This can also reveal species that are missing from a site as well as those present which can be important.

Whilst the principle of 100% lists is, to my mind, extremely important, it needs to be understood that 100% lists are, of course, totally impossible!

• Not every species, animal or plant, will be seen by the observer
• Many species seen will not be identifiable for a variety of reasons
• There are also species that are always present, can always be seen and identified, and to record them on every visit would just create an overload of data.

To overcome these deficiencies I have a defined 'recording policy' and anyone interested can read that as a related article listed below. 

Once a species list has been created the next step is to record that information in a medium that enables it to be analysed in various formats; tables, charts and maps. For this purpose I use a relational database powered by SQL (Structured Query Language). As I wish the data, and the analysis of it, to be accessible to anyone with an interest it is made available on the Internet in the form of a website that is built to access the database of species records.

There are four key elements to the data recorded:

• The date of the survey visit
• The site surveyed
• The species recorded
• The status of the species (it’s frequency on the site, its life stage and additional notes where relevant)

To support this basic data for each observation there are two ‘master’ tables; one for sites (showing the location and other key information about the site) and one for species (with the specific name, its classification, photographs and informative notes). These two master tables are supported by a range of other ‘minor’ tables holding ‘constant’ information (species families, habitat types and so on).

Using combinations of the key elements it is possible to produce analysis in many forms. For example:

• Where can a species be seen and when
• What can be seen in a specific site and within a specific month
• What species can be seen in a given month and where can it be seen

However, it goes much deeper than this by introducing preferred habitats for species or habitats present on a site. This can be extended into underlying geology or into geographical segments. Other detailed analysis can, and had been, be introduced to meet specific needs.