This README.txt file was updated on 2022-05-02 by Ray Alisauskas

GENERAL INFORMATION

1. Title of Dataset:  Data from: Subpopulation contributions to a breeding metapopulation of migratory arctic herbivores: survival, fecundity and asymmetric dispersal.

2. Date of data collection: 2006-2016

3. Geographic location of data collection: North America

DATA & FILE OVERVIEW

1. Description of dataset

This data set represents encounters of 139,177 lesser snow geese (Anser caerulescens) that were captured en masse either as goslings (Age: HY, Hatch Year) close to fledging or as geese with adult plumage (Age: AHY, After Hatch Year) from 2006 to 2015 in Canada's Arctic and Subarctic.  Captures were with the use of a helicopter and ground crews to locate and guide target groups into portable corral traps.  Geese were marked with metal legbands only, no neckbands, at each of 5 subpopulations.  Subpopulations are QMG (State Q, Queen Maud Gulf), SOU (State S, Southampton Island), BAF (State B, Baffin Island), LPB (State L, La Perouse Bay), and JAM (State J, James Bay).  Number of birds banded in each year for each subpopulation, as well as year of recovery of dead birds (2006-2016), were supplied by the Bird Banding Laboratory, Laurel, Maryland, USA.  Recaptures of birds already marked with legbands at each subpopulation were recorded.  Recaptures occurred only between years, so all recaptures were of adult (AHY) geese only, whether marked initially as goslings (HY) or adults (AHY). 

2. File list:
	File 1 Name: enchist2.inp
	File 1 Description: Encounter history of 139,177 lesser snow geese (input data for Program MARK)

	File 2 Name: m-ARRAY.txt
	File 2 Description: input data summary of encounter histories in the m-array format.

	File 3 Name: Parameter_Index_Matrix_(PIM)_from_Global_Model_(survival_parameters_only).jpg
	File 3 Description: Structure of global model as defined by PIM in Program MARK (supplemental information)

	File 4 Name: DesignMatrix_(DM)_TOP_MODEL.csv
	File 4 Description: Model constriants imposed with the design matrix on the top model (supplemental information)

METHODOLOGICAL AND DATA FORMATTING INFORMATION

Each row in the file "enchist2.inp" represents the encounter history for each of 139,177 lesser snow geese captured during 2006-2015.  Encounter histories in file "enchist2.inp" were summarized as 10 pairs of columns (i.e., the first 20 columns) in the Live-Dead format with a pair of columns for each year.  The first column in a pair denotes captures and the second column denoting dead recoveries within a year of captures. Captures in the first column of each pair were coded with the letter corresponding to the geographic state of capture (Q,S,B,L,J), otherwise zero if not captured. Recoveries of dead geese in the second column of each pair were coded with a 1, otherwise zero if not recovered. The last four columns in "enchist2.inp" represent whether each capture history was of an adult male (AM), adult female (AF), juvenile male (JM) or juvenile female (JF), respectively.  An "unobservable state" was set as "U" when importing the encounter history as input data and selecting "Multi-state for Live and Dead Encounters" for Program MARK.  An input data summary of the information in "enhist2.inp" can be found in the file 2 "m-ARRAY.txt".

Age structure in the global and other models was imposed in Program MARK with the Parameter Index Matrix (PIM) so that recoveries of birds marked as HY geese informed juvenile parameters, but also adult (AHY) parameters if recaptured or recovered as adults; sex was structured as a group effect (see file 3 "Parameter_Index_Matrix_(PIM)_from_Global_Model_(survival_parameters_only).jpg").  Additional constraints were imposed to model additive effects between age, sex, state using the Design Matrix (DM) of Program Mark (see file 4 "DesignMatrix_(DM)_TOP_MODEL.csv" as an example). 

Nonidentifiable parameters resulted from situations where there were no captures of geese from which to estimate parameters. Nonidentifiable parameters were set to zero; these included male and female juvenile survival in states S and U, capture probabilies for all 4 age-sex cohorts in state U, transition of male and female HY geese from state S, transition of male and female HY geese from state U, and reported mortality for male and female HY geese in States S and U.

DATA-SPECIFIC INFORMATION FOR: enchist2.inp

1. Number of variables: 24

2. Number of geese/rows: 139,177

3. Variable list (possible values):
	Capture 2006 (0,Q,S,B,L,J)
	Recovery 2006-2007 (0,1)
	Capture 2007 (0,Q,S,B,L,J)
	Recovery 2007-2008 (0,1)
	Capture 2008 (0,Q,S,B,L,J)
	Recovery 2008-2009 (0,1)
	Capture 2009 (0,Q,S,B,L,J)
	Recovery 2009-2010 (0,1)
	Capture 2010 (0,Q,S,B,L,J)
	Recovery 2010-2011 (0,1)
	Capture 2011 (0,Q,S,B,L,J)
	Recovery 2011-2012 (0,1)
	Capture 2012 (0,Q,S,B,L,J)
	Recovery 2012-2013 (0,1)
	Capture 2013 (0,Q,S,B,L,J)
	Recovery 2013-2014 (0,1)
	Capture 2014 (0,Q,S,B,L,J)
	Recovery 2014-2015 (0,1)
	Capture 2015 (0,Q,S,B,L,J)
	Recovery 2015-2016 (0,1)
	Adult male (0,1)
	Adult female (0,1)
	Juvenile male (0,1)
	Juvenile female (0,1)

4. Missing data codes:
	None

5. Abbreviations used:
	Q: Queen Maud Gulf
	S: Southampton Island
	B: Baffin Island
	L: LaPerouse Bay
	J: James Bay

USAGE NOTES

In addition to the multi-state capture-recovery data set as input data for Program MARK (file 1 "enchist2.inp"), consult the survival portion of the Parameter Index Matrix (PIM) (file 3 "Parameter_Index_Matrix_(PIM)_from_Global_Model_(survival_parameters_only).JPG"), as well as further constraints imposed by manipulating the Design Matrix (DM) (file 4 "Design_Matrix_(DM)_Top_Model.csv") for additional guidance.

KEYWORDS

Arctic, dispersal, metapopulation, snow goose, Program MARK, Anser caerulescens caerulescens, multi-state analysis, 
multistate, capture-mark-recapture-recovery, Barker model, annual survival, emigration