Aerial line transect survey to estimate abundance of marsh deer (Blastocerus dichotomus) (Illiger, 1815)

Abstract

The objective was to estimate abundance of marsh deer in the Paraná River basin of this work. The results provided information to support further analysis of the impact of the Porto Primavera flooding lake over population. Sixtynine animals were recorded by aerial survey using distance sampling methodology. Animals were widely distributed throughout the study area. The uncorrected data resulted in a estimate density of 0.0035 ind/ha and a population size of 636 individuals. Correcting the ĝ (0) for the animals that could be missed the calculated abundance was 896 (CV=0.27) individuals. This methodology was applied with success to survey marsh deer. The result was important to evaluate the marsh deer status in the area, and for future analysis of the impact of the flooding dam.