Changepoint detection methods as a practical tool for assessment of ecological restoration

Abstract

1. A key aim of many conservation initiatives is to induce a change, however detecting change from monitoring data can be challenging. Here, we introduce statistical methods for changepoint detection, demonstrating how this under-utilised analytical approach can provide practitioners and researchers insight and help in planning ecological restoration projects. 2. We show why it is important to consider the stage of an ecological intervention as well as the design of the study and how this impacts the power of detecting a change in observed data. 3. Practical Implication: We provide user-friendly software and guidance that can be used to explore and quantify the data needed to detect change, under different settings. This enables practitioners to understand data requirements before planning monitoring studies, and effectively manage ongoing projects through all stages.

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BibTeX RIS

BibTeX

@misc{gong2026changepoint,
  title = {{Changepoint detection methods as a practical tool for assessment of ecological restoration}},
  author = {Mengyi Gong and Simone Conte and Tom Jameson and Rebecca Killick and James C. Bull and Luca Börger and Rachel McCrea},
  howpublished = {EcoEvoRxiv},
  year = {2026},
  month = oct,
  doi = {10.32942/x2fd5p},
  url = {https://ecoevorxiv.org/repository/view/15166/},
  note = {CC BY 4.0},
}

RIS

TY  - UNPB
TI  - Changepoint detection methods as a practical tool for assessment of ecological restoration
AU  - Mengyi Gong
AU  - Simone Conte
AU  - Tom Jameson
AU  - Rebecca Killick
AU  - James C. Bull
AU  - Luca Börger
AU  - Rachel McCrea
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/10/14
PB  - EcoEvoRxiv
DO  - 10.32942/x2fd5p
UR  - https://ecoevorxiv.org/repository/view/15166/
AB  - 1. A key aim of many conservation initiatives is to induce a change, however detecting change from monitoring data can be challenging. Here, we introduce statistical methods for changepoint detection, demonstrating how this under-utilised analytical approach can provide practitioners and researchers insight and help in planning ecological restoration projects. 2. We show why it is important to consider the stage of an ecological intervention as well as the design of the study and how this impacts the power of detecting a change in observed data. 3. Practical Implication: We provide user-friendly software and guidance that can be used to explore and quantify the data needed to detect change, under different settings. This enables practitioners to understand data requirements before planning monitoring studies, and effectively manage ongoing projects through all stages.
ER  -

Abstract

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