Investigating Tuart Woodlands

1
Investigating Tuart Woodlands

• Tuart Survey Training
• Friends of Trigg Bushland Inc
• www.triggbushland.org.au

2
Introduction

• Survey to provide detailed record of Tuart
  status for baseline purposes
• Complement earlier work by Tuart Response Group
  and the Tuart Atlas
• Assistance from City of Stirling and DEC and
  THRG/Centre of Excellence for Forest Health

3
What is Trigg Bushland?

• A Class Reserve
• Managed by the City of Stirling (Friends of Trigg
  Bushland act only as volunteers and can only
  make recommendations to the City of Stirling)
• 144 hectares
• Only urban bushland that reaches from the
  shoreline to forested dunes
• Contains rare flora and areas classed as
  pristine

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Scope of the Survey (Trigg Bushland image
courtesy of City of Stirling)
5
Topics for Discussion

• Purpose and methodology overview
• Tools and measuring techniques
• Recording the data
• Ground rules
• Progress to date

6
Purpose

• To provide baseline data for forest decline
  and/or regeneration
• To fill in the gaps of aerial surveys, eg,
  Tuart Atlas
• To provide data for future management plans, eg
  fire control and dieback management

7
Methodology

• Volunteers walk a grid through each section of
  bush.
• Each tuart is identified and photographed while a
  GPS is adjacent to the tree.
• Details of the tuart and understorey are recorded
  on the data collection sheet.
• The photographs and the GPS tracks are matched
  using OziExplorer and OziPhotoTool software.
• All the data are combined into Excel Spreadsheet.

8
Topics for Discussion

• Purpose and methodology overview
• Tools and measuring techniques
• Recording the data
• Ground rules
• Progress to date

9
Tools You Will Need

• Hand held GPS
• Digital Camera
• Clipboard
• Recording Sheets and pen/pencil
• Map with 10m grid marked
• Measuring tape or scale on clipboard
• Measuring stick for estimating tree height

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Data Collection Sheet
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Field map with 10m grid
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GPS Setup

• Ensure GPS is set to correct datum (WGS 84) and
  measurement is in metres
• Ensure satellite reception and check error
  should be less than 5 metres.
• Take photograph of GPS showing current date and
  time before beginning

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Record photo of GPS showing date and time
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Some tips

• Ensure GPS has fresh batteries
• Turn on GPS at beginning of survey and leave it
  on, ensuring it is not obscured
• Make sure GPS is next to the tree being
  photographed, holding it flat so that the antenna
  has free sky
• Photo and GPS point are linked by the time stamp
  so the quality and aesthetics of the photo are
  not important
• Plan your track so that extraneous points are
  minimized

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• What is wrong?
• Hand is over the antenna zone
• GPS should be horizontal

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Measured Features

• Tree height
• Tree diameter
• Number of trunks
• Growth Stage
• Tree health
• Canopy density
• Understorey disturbance
• Weed invasion and major species

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Measuring techniques
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Tree height using stick method
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Measuring tree Height
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Tree Diameter

• Measure diameter of largest trunk directly or
• Use soft tape for circumference and divide by pi
• Take measurement 1.5m above ground level

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Number of trunks

• Measure largest trunk (dead or alive) at chest
  height, approx 1.5 metres from ground
• Record number of dead trunks in comments

This is an example of a tuart with extensive fire
damage, four trunks, one of which (far right) is
dead,
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Single trunk, recovery from fire.
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Healthy growth from burnt stump,
This is an example of a tuart with some fire
damage, four trunks, two of which are dead. You
can see mature healthy leaves.
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Twin trunk healthy Tuart
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Growth Stage

• Seedling juvenile leaf, soft wood
• Juvenile - adult leaf, soft wood
• Mature adult leaf, hard wood
• Regrowth juvenile leaf, hard wood

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Juvenile leaf heart shaped
Mature leaf sickle shaped
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Tree Health

• Healthy
• Stressed
• Dead

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Measuring Canopy Density

• Estimate in increments of 10
• Provides indication of health status
• Affects plant and animal populations in
  understorey

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After Compton (1962)
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30 Canopy
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50 canopy
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90 Canopy
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Understorey Disturbance

• Estimate using scale of low, moderate or high
• Note extent of weed invasion
• Identify major weeds
• Note physical disturbance, eg, earthworks,
  pathways, rubbish

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Seedling with low disturbance of ground cover
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Mature Tuart with high disturbance
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Topics for Discussion

• Purpose and methodology overview
• Tools and measuring techniques
• Recording the data
• Ground rules
• Progress to date

37
Recording Data

• Use actual measurement or scaled estimate
  wherever possible.
• Use metric measurements with unit of measurement
  as specified on data collection sheet (eg height
  in metres, diameter in centimetres)
• Estimates should be agreed between team members
  (or averaged where there is disagreement)

38
GPS Tracks for 3 teams (10m grid)
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Tabular Data in Excel
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Summary of Measured Features

• Tree height
• Tree diameter
• Number of trunks
• Growth Stage
• Tree health
• Canopy density
• Understorey disturbance
• Weed invasion and major species

41
Topics for Discussion

• Purpose and methodology overview
• Tools and measuring techniques
• Recording the data
• Ground rules
• Progress to date

42
Safety Ground Rules

• Stay in teams.
• Know where you are.
• Have a mobile phone.
• Wear a hat and glasses or sunglasses.
• Do not try to go too fast. The bush can be dense
  and difficult to get through. Avoid hurting
  yourself by moving slowly.

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Key Points to take away

• Important to make clear records
• Use appropriate tools
• Record data with an eye for presentation
• Work together to ensure consistency

44
Topics for Discussion

• Purpose and methodology overview
• Tools and measuring techniques
• Recording the data
• Ground rules
• Progress to date

45
Duart Arnott Progress

• Data collection complete
• Data entry and validation complete
• Data submitted to DEC and Tuart Health Research
  Group (Murdoch/DEC)

Tuart recording sites in Duart-Arnott
46
King Albert Progress

• Data collection not yet complete
• Data entry and validation in progress

47
Elliot Progress

• Data collection commenced

48
St Marys Progress

• Data collection commenced

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• The end
• - thank you !