Abstract
Predictive models of wildlife-habitat relationships often have been developed without being tested The apparent classification accuracy of such models can be optimistically biased and misleading. Data resampling methods exist that yield a more realistic estimate of model classification accuracy These methods are simple and require no new sample data. We illustrate these methods (cross-validation, jackknife resampling, and bootstrap resampling) with computer simulation to demonstrate the increase in precision of the estimate. The bootstrap method is then applied to field data as a technique for model comparison We recommend that biologists use some resampling procedure to evaluate wildlife habitat models prior to field evaluation.
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Verbyla, D.L., Litvaitis, J.A. Resampling methods for evaluating classification accuracy of wildlife habitat models. Environmental Management 13, 783–787 (1989). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01868317
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01868317