Training workshop on Analysis of Multivariate Data from Ecology and Environmental Science, using PRIMER v6

Indian River Research and Education Center
Ft Pierce FL, 23-27 May 2005

This five day workshop will cover the statistical analysis of assemblage data (species by samples matrices of abundance, area cover etc) and/or multi-variable environmental data which arise in a wide range of applications in environmental science and ecology, from local environmental impact assessments, through basic biological studies (e.g. of dietary composition) and monitoring of widescale biodiversity change, to purely physico-chemical analyses.

Based on the PRIMER package (Plymouth Routines In Multivariate Ecological Research), a worldwide standard software tool used in over 1500 recent SCI-listed papers, for analysis of assemblages of marine benthic flora/fauna, corals, plankton, fish, algae etc, and, increasingly, terrestrial, freshwater and palaeontological data

The workshop covers definitions of similarity, clustering (CLUSTER), ordination by non-metric multi-dimensional scaling (MDS) and principal components analysis (PCA), hypothesis testing on similarity matrices (ANOSIM) and other permutation tests (RELATE), linking biotic patterns to environmental variables (BIO-ENV), identifying species responsible for observed community pattern (SIMPER, BVSTEP), comparison of ordinations (2nd stage MDS), dominance curves and (bio)diversity indices, including new measures based on taxonomic relatedness of species (TAXDTEST), and practical issues such as taxonomic level, causality, design, choice of analysis, etc.

Lectures will also cover new tools in PRIMER v6, to be released late Spring 2005, e.g. a wider range of similarity measures including new dispersion-weighted and taxonomically-based coefficients, new global permutation tests for significance of dominance curves and biota-environment relationships, SIMPER analysis for 2-way layouts and environmental variables, non-parametric 'linkage' trees, missing data algorithms, improved MDS plots and diagnostics, merging of non-matching species lists, a wider class of richness estimators, saveable workspaces etc

The workshop will be given by Dr K R Clarke (PRIMER-E and an honorary fellow of the Plymouth Marine Lab, UK). Bob Clarke is a researcher in ecological statistics and has worked for many years at the PML, where he was responsible for adapting and developing the methods underlying the PRIMER package

'Hands-on' lab sessions will use real literature case studies, analysed with PRIMER. Participants are also encouraged to bring some of their own data to the course. The emphasis throughout is on practical application and interpretation, the theoretical aspects (e.g. the multivariate statistical methods which are the core of the course) being carefully selected to be those that are simple to describe and understand. No prior statistical knowledge is assumed

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Registration information can be found at: http://www.doce-conferences.ufl.edu/bps/default.asp?id=121.

Questions can be addressed to 'T.J.' Evens at TEvens@USHRL.ars.usda.gov (phone: 772-462-5921). Clarification of current v5 licence status can be sought from Cathy Clarke at admin@primer-e.com.





Terence J. Evens, Ph.D.
Research Ecologist
USDA-ARS
US Horticultural Research Laboratory
2001 S. Rock Rd.
Ft. Pierce FL 34945
772-462-5921 (W)
772-462-5961 (F)