Sampling Methods in the Southern California Rocky Intertidal Zone
Presentation Type
Poster
Presentation Type
Submission
Keywords
biodiversity, spatial sampling, methods, intertidal
Department
Biology
Major
Hispanic Studies
Abstract
This project seeks to evaluate the efficacy of ecological sampling methods in the California rocky intertidal zone. The OPIHI method, developed by the University of Hawai’i, is a common point-intercept method using quadrats to estimate ecological data including species coverage, population density, and biodiversity of an area. Its effectiveness for representing biodiversity has not been tested in the California rocky intertidal zone. The OPIHI method is quantitatively compared to an alternative, more time consuming and comprehensive ecological surveying method known as bioblitzing. Preliminary data comparing these two methods along five transects of quadrat data suggest that the differences between all three biodiversity indicators (richness, Shannon’s index, and Simpson’s index) are minimal between the two methods. The mean greatest difference in richness between the two methods is 1.636 from transect 1 with a standard deviation of 1.362. The greatest mean difference in Shannon’s index is 0.033 from transect 2 with a standard deviation of 0.342. The greatest mean difference in Simpson’s index is -0.018 from transect 4 with a standard deviation of 0.087. Overall, the mean difference between the two methods for richness is a positive value, suggesting that the bioblitz method returns a higher richness value than the OPIHI method. The majority of the mean differences in the Shannon’s and Simpson’s indices is negative, suggesting that the OPIHI method overestimates these two indices. This project has valuable implications for efficient and effective ecological sampling because the OPIHI method is less time and labor intensive.
Faculty Mentor
Dr. Florybeth La Valle
Location
Waves Cafeteria
Start Date
24-3-2023 2:00 PM
End Date
24-3-2023 4:00 PM
Sampling Methods in the Southern California Rocky Intertidal Zone
Waves Cafeteria
This project seeks to evaluate the efficacy of ecological sampling methods in the California rocky intertidal zone. The OPIHI method, developed by the University of Hawai’i, is a common point-intercept method using quadrats to estimate ecological data including species coverage, population density, and biodiversity of an area. Its effectiveness for representing biodiversity has not been tested in the California rocky intertidal zone. The OPIHI method is quantitatively compared to an alternative, more time consuming and comprehensive ecological surveying method known as bioblitzing. Preliminary data comparing these two methods along five transects of quadrat data suggest that the differences between all three biodiversity indicators (richness, Shannon’s index, and Simpson’s index) are minimal between the two methods. The mean greatest difference in richness between the two methods is 1.636 from transect 1 with a standard deviation of 1.362. The greatest mean difference in Shannon’s index is 0.033 from transect 2 with a standard deviation of 0.342. The greatest mean difference in Simpson’s index is -0.018 from transect 4 with a standard deviation of 0.087. Overall, the mean difference between the two methods for richness is a positive value, suggesting that the bioblitz method returns a higher richness value than the OPIHI method. The majority of the mean differences in the Shannon’s and Simpson’s indices is negative, suggesting that the OPIHI method overestimates these two indices. This project has valuable implications for efficient and effective ecological sampling because the OPIHI method is less time and labor intensive.