Assessing Population Trends of Species with Imperfect Detection: Double Count Analyses and Simulations Confirm Reliable Estimates in Brown Frogs

Simple Summary Estimating the abundance of populations is a key task of zoologists, but animal species often are difficult to detect- As a consequence, obtaining estimates of abundance can be problematic. For many frogs, the count of the number of egg clutches is the standard approach. How many egg clutches are missed during these counts? What are the consequences of missing some egg clutches on the estimates of population decline? First, we used the double-observer approach to estimate the detection probability of the clutches of two frog species (the agile frogs Rana latastei and R. dalmatina) and found that, for both species, clutches are very easy to detect. Subsequently, by using simulations, we showed that if the detection probability is very high, such as in this case, assessing if populations are stable or declining is straightforward. The situation is much trickier for species that are difficult to detect. Information on the detection probability of a species can be used to optimize their monitoring strategies. Most animal species are detected imperfectly and overlooking individuals can result in a biased inference of the abundance patterns and underlying processes. Several techniques can incorporate the imperfect detection process for a more accurate estimation of abundance, but most of them require repeated surveys, i.e., more sampling effort compared to single counts. In this study, we used the dependent double-observer approach to estimate the detection probability of the egg clutches of two brown frog species, Rana dalmatina and R. latastei. We then simulated the data of a declining population at different levels of detection probability in order to assess under which conditions the double counts provided better estimates of population trends compared to naive egg counts, given the detectability of frog clutches. Both species showed a very high detection probability, with average values of 93% for Rana dalmatina and 97% for R. latastei. Simulations showed that not considering imperfect detection reduces the power of detecting population trends if detection probability is low. However, at high detection probability (>80%), ignoring the imperfect detection does not bias the estimates of population trends. This suggests that, for species laying large and easily identifiable egg clutches, a single count can provide useful estimates if surveys are correctly timed.

Automated summary

Estimating the abundance of animal populations is challenging due to imperfect detection. This study used the double-observer approach to estimate the detection probability of frog egg clutches and found high detection probabilities for two frog species. Simulations showed that high detection probabilities can provide accurate estimates of population trends, suggesting that for species with easily detectable egg clutches, a single count can be sufficient.