And that would mean we'd have to be much more conservative in our harvest and season regulations. Berner adds that increased hunting pressure requires increasing amounts of thorough biological information. The only way we can do that is with more data. There, research scientists devise survey methods and analyze the results. Step one is to gather the information.
Survey techniques vary by animal species.
As any hunter or wildlife watcher knows, wild animals move frequently and rarely hang out in the open where they can be easily documented. Biologists have scientifically designed dozens of statistically defendable survey techniques to get a fix on what' s back in those dark woods. Surveys vary from transect flights, such as what Lawrence does, to tabulations of otter tracks to counts of ruffed grouse drumming. Counters watch from airplanes and helicopters, listen from pickup trucks, and examine tracks in the dirt on their hands and knees. Carefully worded questionnaires are given to hunters to determine harvest, success rates, and other information.