Multivariate Statistics for Wildlife and Ecology Research

Authors: Kevin McGarigal, Susan Stafford, Sam Cushman



With its focus on the practical application of the techniques of multivariate statistics, this book shapes the powerful tools of statistics for the specific needs of ecologists and makes statistics more applicable to their course of study. It gives readers a solid conceptual understanding of the role of multivariate statistics in ecological applications and the relationships among various techniques, while avoiding detailed mathematics and the underlying theory. More importantly, the reader will gain insight into the type of research questions best handled by each technique and the important considerations in applying them. Whether used as a textbook for specialised courses or as a supplement to general statistics texts, the book emphasises those techniques that students of ecology and natural resources most need to understand and employ in their research. While targeted for upper-division and graduate students in wildlife biology, forestry, and ecology, and for professional wildlife scientists and natural resource managers, this book will also be valuable to researchers in any of the biological sciences.

Table of contents

Front Matter
Pages i-xiii

Introduction and Overview
Pages 1-17

Ordination: Principal Components Analysis
Pages 19-80

Cluster Analysis
Pages 81-128

Discriminant Analysis
Pages 129-187

Canonical Correlation Analysis
Pages 189-232

Summary and Comparison
Pages 233-248

Back Matter
Pages 249-283