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Question
Asked 25 May 2014

Is it possible to estimate population density from line transect encounter data with no distance metric, simply frequency of encounter data?

I have several years of encounter data for spoor on a network of transects in an isolated National Park. The data do not include a distance metric (therefore the programme Distance doesn't work), but are simply record the frequency and location of encounters along a network of transects. The study species has a home range of approximately 1km2, is it possible to estimate population density from these data? Thank you!
Carl R. Hutter
Louisiana State University
If you could quantify your transect width you could then calculate an area (width x length) and find the densities. You might need to correct for some biases as well, so I would suggest reading the literature on those methods.