What are the advantages of the belt transect over the line transect?
A belt transect will supply more data than a line transect. It will give data on the abundance of individual species at different points along the line, as well as on their range.
Why are belt transects better?
Height profiles are clearer using the belt transect as they record the highest plant in each quadrat, which gives a better indication of the plant density. The major advantage of the belt transect is the percentage cover data, which gives a good indication of how abundant certain plants are.
What is the difference between a line and belt transect?
The key difference between belt and line transect is that belt transect uses a rectangular area centred on a line to collect information while line transect uses a straight line to gather data. Both line and belt transects show zonation of species along some environmental gradient.
Why are line transects unrealistic?
Explain why line transects might give an unrealistic sample of a community? A line transect only provides information about the number and distribution of species along an enviromental gradientfixed line, therefore Any species not touching the transect line would not be recorded.
What is the belt transect method?
The belt transect method is used when there is a gradual change from one side of a habitat to another, like the change in light between the outer edges of a forest to the centre.
Why use a transect instead of a Quadrat?
A quadrat has been placed at regular intervals of a metre (or a few metres) along the transect. A transect is usually used to investigate a gradual change in a habitat rather than to simply estimate the number of organisms within it.
What is a drawback of transects?
Displaying the data collected in line transect diagrams also becomes easier because the horizontal scale can be adjusted to fit smaller sheets of paper. The disadvantage in this case is that many of the species present may be overlooked if the interval selected is too large.
How is belt transect carried out?
Belt Transect Method In this method, the transect line is laid out across the area to be surveyed and a quadrat is placed on the first marked point on the line. The plants and/or animals inside the quadrat are then identified and their abundance estimated.
How long should a belt transect be?
The transects should be large enough to contain several suitable lichen-festooned trees and downed branches, probably about 10-15m wide and 25- 50 m long. Ideally, each group of 3-4 students will have their own transect.