ERCCIS are committed to developing different methods we collect data to improve the robustness of analysing long-term trends. ERCCIS has a rich history in providing the most comprehensive dataset of species in Cornwall & Isles of Scilly, however despite having a wealth of high quality data of national significance, there remains great challenges in developing a unified dataset with enough robustness to provide reliable trends of wildlife populations in the county.
Some different types of data we hold include:
- National Recording Scheme long-term monitoring
- Local Recording group targeted surveys
- Effort based (timed) surveys
- Opportunistic records species presence
One of the biggest challenges currently with generating robust analysis is creating signal in large amounts of our data that is collected opportunistically, outside of a standardised methodology and well defined sampling. While many improvements have been made to trends analysis through advancements in statistical modelling, we have identified a clear need to develop our data collection in more sophisticated ways.
Two ways we are developing more structured data collection are:
- Quantifying "survey effort" by recording the amount of time spent on each recording session
- Collecting complete checklists of species within targeted taxonomic groups
We are working closely with Cornwall Mammal Group to trial this new approach on 3 individual species that will benefit from structured surveying:
- Hedgehogs
- Harvest mice
- Otters
SeaQuest Surveys