Life Sciences Commons^™

Spatial capture–recapture (SCR) is a relatively recent development in ecological statistics that provides a spatial context for estimating abundance and space use patterns, and improves inference about absolute population density. SCR has been applied to individual

encounter data collected noninvasively using methods such as camera traps, hair snares, and scat surveys. Despite the widespread use of capture based surveys to monitor amphibians and reptiles, there are few applications of SCR in the herpetological literature. We demonstrate the utility of the application of SCR for studies of reptiles and amphibians by analyzing capture–recapture data from Red-Backed Salamanders, Plethodon cinereus, collected using …

1. Movement is influenced by landscape structure, configuration and geometry, but measuring distance as perceived by animals poses technical and logistical challenges. Instead, movement is typically measured using Euclidean distance, irrespective of location or landscape structure, or is based on arbitrary cost surfaces. A

recently proposed extension of spatial capture-recapture (SCR)models resolves this issue using spatial encounter

histories of individuals to calculate least-cost paths (ecological distance: Ecology, 94, 2013, 287) thereby relaxing

the Euclidean assumption. We evaluate the consequences of not accounting for movement heterogeneity when

estimating abundance in highly structured landscapes, and demonstrate the value of this approach for …