Sampling Strategies
In my field research, I employed three strategies to assess plant species abundance and diversity in the urban park: systematic, random, and stratified. Here are the results:
Sampling Time:
• Systematic Sampling: The fastest with regards to sampling time.
• Random Sampling: This is the slowest among all the five methods concerning the sample selection period.
Accuracy Influenced by Species Abundance: The use of the sampling strategies was affected by the distribution of the species. The two most common species in my sampling were the Red Maple and the Sugar Maple, consequently, the percentage errors for all methods were less for these common species than the rare species like the Paper Birch and the Sassafras. Nonetheless, the completion accuracy of a sample conformably reduces with the shortage of the species.
Percentage Errors for Common Species:
| Species | Systematic (%) | Random (%) | Stratified (%) |
| Red Maple | 12.00 | 28.00 | 22.00 |
| Sugar Maple | 18.00 | 32.00 | 20.00 |
Percentage Errors for Rare Species:
| Species | Systematic (%) | Random (%) | Stratified (%) |
| Paper Birch | 45.00 | 38.00 | 50.00 |
| Sassafras | 55.00 | 48.00 | 40.00 |
Differentiation among the 3 Strategies’ Accuracy:
Systematic Sampling: This method gave fairly reliable outcomes for both the popular and less common species but presented a higher degree of error with Paper Birch.
Random Sampling: This method generally had the highest errors; however, the specific percentage destination was less for rare species like Paper Birch, meaning that the balance occurred due to random factors.
Stratified Sampling: This method displayed fewer errors for Sassafras and more significant errors for Paper Birch. It was suitable for the everyday common types of trees, and it was outstanding for sugar maple.
Conclusion: Note that the systematic sampling was speedy and relatively accurate for the major species, while the random sampling might work better for the minor species, although the procedure takes more time. Although there needed to be more consistency with the study’s findings, the stratified sampling technique may thus be helpful in the following study settings in the area.