Line transects of two-dimensional random fields: Estimation and design

In line-transect sampling data are collected continuously along the path travelled. These data are then used to estimate some characteristic of an entire region. We model the characteristic of the region as a linear functional of Z(), a realization of a random field, and our data as the values of Z(x) for x along the path. We study how to estimate the characteristic of interest and how to choose the path to accurately estimate it.