Testing Reliability of Body Size Measurements Using Hind Foot Length in Roe Deer |
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| Authors: | MATHIEU GAREL JEAN-MICHEL GAILLARD THIERRY CHEVRIER JACQUES MICHALLET DANIEL DELORME GUY VAN LAERE |
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| Affiliation: | 1. Université de Lyon, Université Lyon 1, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Unité Mixte de Recherche 5558, Laboratoire de Biométrie et Biologie Evolutive, Bǎtiment G. Mendel, 43 boulevard du 11 novembre 1918, F-69622, Villeurbanne, France;2. Office National de la Chasse et de la Faune Sauvage, Centre National d'Étude et de Recherche Appliquée Cervidés-Sanglier, 1 Place Exelmans, F-55000, Bar-le-Duc, France |
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| Abstract: | Abstract: We quantified the repeatability of >900 individual measures of hind foot length from 2 French populations of roe deer (Capreolus capreolus) monitored by capture-recapture. We found a high repeatability (i.e., high intra-class correlation, 0.76, 95% CI = 0.72–0.83 and 0.92, 95% CI = 0.91–0.95) in both populations. We also found that inexperienced observers reached a high level of intra- (1.00, 95% CI = 0.96–1.00) and inter-observer repeatability (0.99, 95% CI = 0.98–1.00) when measuring hind foot length of harvested animals with a tool specifically designed for this task. Managers should pay particular attention to limit measurement errors because unreliable measurements require an increased sample size to assess individual variation and can mask biological patterns. |
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| Keywords: | Capreolus capreolus hind foot length intra-class correlation observer reliability repeatability reproducibility |
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