Bl. Winner et Rh. Mcmichael, EVALUATION OF A NEW-TYPE OF BOX SPLITTER DESIGNED FOR SUBSAMPLING ESTUARINE ICHTHYOFAUNA, Transactions of the American Fisheries Society, 126(6), 1997, pp. 1041-1047
We designed and tested a wooden box splitter for use in subsampling es
tuarine ichthyofauna in the field. Results showed that the splitter op
erator had a significant effect on the estimation of the original samp
le volume whereas the splitter being used did not. Estimates of the or
iginal sample volumes of water or original fish abundances were biased
. Coefficients of variation ranged from 1.90% to 4.10% for the volumet
ric subsamples and from 0.00% to 29.02% for fish abundance subsamples.
The precision of estimates of abundance or of species composition dec
reased with increased splitting. However, the species composition and
length-frequency distribution of the original samples were preserved i
n the subsamples for 75% or more of the first-level splits. This subsa
mpling device is practical in the field and statistically adequate for
use in a fisheries program.