Overview
A transect is a basic ecological tool. Researchers actively search for gradients, for example, so that they can observe and measure changes. For example, a rainfall gradient will help a researcher understand the importance of rainfall to plant communities. Species are expected to change, either in their presence or absence or in their growth, as the rainfall increases from site to site.
Transects are usually made up of plots (or study sites) that occur in some organized fashion. The key concept is that there is a significant change in the factor being studied (rainfall in the previous example) and that this change is expressed as a gradient along the sites. Often this happens along a geographic transect, such as along sites which go up a tall mountain. Other times, the transect is conceptual and consists of sites that are different because of historical phenomena (e.g., years since a forest has burned) or cultural phenomena (e.g., years since a field was cultivated). Occasionally, a transect is simply a set of sites which occur in an area on which a preliminary study is being done to see if there are any obvious patterns which might suggest that there is some underlying causative factor.
Researchers often look for pattern along these transects. There are a number of general tools which have been developed to help uncover these patterns.
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Last Updated: September 23, 2011.