Aerial Census of Wild Horses in Western Utah

Abstract

The accuracy of aerial censuses in estimating absolute density of wildlife populations varies widely. Aerial censusing of wild horses was done to compare the effects of experience and aircraft type. The difference between aircraft types was not found to be statistically significant, while observer experience was significant at the 5% level. The variability caused by these factors places considerable uncertainty on projections of rate of increase based upon a comparison of two or more aerial censuses.