Fam. Tuyttens et al., Estimating population size of Eurasian badgers (Meles Meles) using mark-recapture and mark-resight data, J MAMMAL, 80(3), 1999, pp. 950-960
Estimates of abundance of medium-to-large mammals by traditional mark-recap
ture models may be unreliable because quantity and quality of trapping data
are low. The proposed closed-subpopulation model provides a flexible frame
work to increase the amount of data used for estimation of demographic para
meters, by taking into account characteristics of the population and using
ancillary non-trapping data. This model defines a subsection of the populat
ion that is known to be alive and within the study area during a certain pe
riod, regardless of which animals were actually caught. Population size is
estimated from the proportion of animals in this closed subpopulation that
were actually captured. We used this model to estimate size of a partly cul
led population of Eurasian badgers (Meles meles). Number of badgers include
d in the closed subpopulation was maximized by using data from trapping, ro
ad-traffic accidents, and radiotelemetry, and by assuming that no additions
occurred to the population of young between trapping occasions. Probabilit
ies of capture varied by season and age-class but not sex, trapping, or rad
io-tagging. Population estimates appeared reliable because estimated number
of times individual badgers were trapped in a year corresponded with obser
ved frequencies and estimated size of the young and adult populations corre
sponded favorably with estimates based on a mark-resight procedure.