Mapping Stream Habitats with a Global Positioning System: Accuracy, Precision, and Comparison with Traditional Methods

We tested the precision and accuracy of the Trimble GeoXT™ global positioning system (GPS) handheld receiver on point and area features and compared estimates of stream habitat dimensions (e.g., lengths and areas of riffles and pools) that were made in three different Oklahoma streams using the GPS receiver and a tape measure. The precision of differentially corrected GPS (DGPS) points was not affected by the number of GPS position fixes (i.e., geographic location estimates) averaged per DGPS point. Horizontal error of points ranged from 0.03 to 2.77 m and did not differ with the number of position fixes per point. The error of area measurements ranged from 0.1% to 110.1% but decreased as the area increased. Again, error was independent of the number of position fixes averaged per polygon corner. The estimates of habitat lengths, widths, and areas did not differ when measured using two methods of data collection (GPS and a tape measure), nor did the differences among methods change at three stream sites with contrasting morphologies. Measuring features with a GPS receiver was up to 3.3 times faster on average than using a tape measure, although signal interference from high streambanks or overhanging vegetation occasionally limited satellite signal availability and prolonged measurements with a GPS receiver. There were also no differences in precision of habitat dimensions when mapped using a continuous versus a position fix average GPS data collection method. Despite there being some disadvantages to using the GPS in stream habitat studies, measuring stream habitats with a GPS resulted in spatially referenced data that allowed the assessment of relative habitat position and changes in habitats over time, and was often faster than using a tape measure. For most spatial scales of interest, the precision and accuracy of DGPS data are adequate and have logistical advantages when compared to traditional methods of measurement.

[1]  Michael K. Young,et al.  A hierarchical approach to classifying stream habitat features , 1993 .

[2]  Elliott D. Kaplan.  Understanding GPS : principles and applications , 1996 .

[3]  Carl J Legleiter,et al.  Spectrally Driven Classification of High Spatial Resolution, Hyperspectral Imagery: A Tool for Mapping In-Stream Habitat , 2003, Environmental management.

[4]  Henrik Brøseth,et al.  Hunting effort and game vulnerability studies on a small scale: a new technique combining radio‐telemetry, GPS and GIS , 2000 .

[5]  Cheryl C Harrelson,et al.  Stream Channel Reference Sites: An Illustrated Guide to Field Technique , 1994 .

[6]  M. Kenward,et al.  Small sample inference for fixed effects from restricted maximum likelihood. , 1997, Biometrics.

[7]  J. Boardman,et al.  High spatial resolution hyperspectral mapping of in-stream habitats, depths, and woody debris in mountain streams , 2003 .

[8]  Piotr Parasiewicz,et al.  MesoHABSIM: A concept for application of instream flow models in river restoration planning , 2001 .

[9]  A. Lemly,et al.  North American Journal of Fisheries Management Habitat Sequencing and the Importance of Discharge in Inferences , 2022 .

[10]  P. Burrough,et al.  Principles of geographical information systems , 1998 .

[11]  R. Kuehl.  Design of Experiments: Statistical Principles of Research Design and Analysis , 1999 .

[12]  J. Wiens.  Riverine landscapes: taking landscape ecology into the water , 2002 .

[13]  J. Omernik.  Ecoregions of the Conterminous United States , 1987 .

[14]  C. J. Liu.  Effects of Selective Availability on GPS Positioning Accuracy , 2002 .

[15]  I. Schlosser,et al.  Stream Fish Ecology: A Landscape PerspectiveLand use, which influences the terrestrial-aquatic interface, can affect fish populations and their community dynamics , 1991 .

[16]  C. C. Barton,et al.  Where in the world are my field plots? Using GPS effectively in environmental field studies , 2004 .

[17]  M. Charlton,et al.  Quantitative geography : perspectives on spatial data analysis by , 2001 .

[18]  Theodore M. Webster,et al.  Accuracy of a Global Positioning System (GPS) for Weed Mapping , 1997 .

[19]  M. Molles,et al.  Ecology: Concepts and Applications , 1998 .

[20]  J. Wiens.  Spatial Scaling in Ecology , 1989 .

[21]  Stanley A. Schumm,et al.  To interpret the earth : ten ways to be wrong , 1992 .