, Liqun Xi and Liping Liu
The University of Hong Kong and
Peking University
Abstract: Estimation methods are suggested to estimate the population size in proportional trapping removal and recapture models when the capture times are observed. With this additional information, the maximum likelihood estimate and the optimal martingale estimation of population size are derived. The ill-conditioning problem in Good's estimator is avoided. The asymptotic properties of the proposed estimators are obtained. The effect of allowing for trap availability and the role of capture times are examined through a simulation study. The asymptotic efficiency for the estimates are compared, and the methods are applied to a data set.
Key words and phrases: Capture times, proportional trapping model, recapture experiment, removal experiment.