CVS-EEP Vegetation Monitoring Workshop

1. Level-2 & Level-3 Procedures and Techniques CVS-EEP Vegetation Monitoring Workshop June 18, 2008 Tom Wentworth – NC State University CAROLINA VEGETATION SURVEY

2. Credits! • All photos by Carol Ann McCormick from the Herbarium, UNC-Chapel Hill. • And...starring (as “Persons in Blue”) from the Carolina Vegetation Survey: • Caroline Bernard • Forbes Boyle

3. Background – Level 2 • Level 2 is designed specifically for restoration areas with planted material; only woody stems are inventoried, both planted and natural: • Planted stem inventory: • goals: to determine pattern of installation of woody stems with respect to species, spacing, and density and to monitor their survival and growth • Natural woody stem inventory: • goals: as above, but focuses on inventory of natural woody stems

4. Background – Level 3 • Level 3 provides more general information on abundance and leaf area cover of common species (woody and herbaceous): • cover is estimated for all species exceeding specified lower level (typically 5% cover); other species may be ignored • low-cover species of concern (rare taxa, invasive exotics) may also be documented • tally of planted woody stems is optional • tally of natural woody stems is also optional

5. Information Gathered • Plot Data (levels 2-3): • specific data about the plot (e.g., elevation) and metadata (data about the data, e.g., taxonomic standard used) • NB: forms for two levels are slightly different! • Planted Woody Stem Data (levels 2 - {3}): • information about all planted stems, including location, dimensions, vitality, and damage • Natural Woody Stem Data (levels 2 - {3}): • tallies of naturally occurring woody stems in size classes • Cover Data (level 3): • percentage cover classes for more common species

6. Some General Guidelines • Complete as many fields as possible: • fields designated in Bold & Underlined must be completed • Use pencil (7 mm mechanical preferred). • It is generally preferable to cross out mistakes rather than to erase them. • Please take advantage of “NOTES” fields to record helpful information.

7. About the Inventory Plots • Location of stands - based on available vegetation, project goals, needs of landowners, representativeness, etc. • Size and shape of plots: • for level 2, always 100 m2 (1 are) and either 10 x 10 m (typical) or 5 x 20 m, as needed • for level 3, a modular approach is used, with all modules 100 m2 (1 are); if more than a single module is used (as many as 10 may be used), all modules are 10 x 10 m

8. About the Inventory Plots • Number of plots - refer to protocol for guidelines. • Other considerations: • project directors will select stands within which are placed a plot or plots • plots should be placed in such a way that avoids bias • plot placement should also avoid edge effects and achieve homogeneity of vegetation and environment

9. Setting up a Plotin the Field • Discussion and demonstration topic (please refer to “Level-1 Procedures and Techniques”)...

10. Plot Data (levels 2 & 3) -General Information: Plot ID • Plot identification is critical to success of the inventory effort: • Project Label: unique and assigned by EEP • Project Name: official name (may not be unique) assigned by EEP • Team: each field team within a project has a unique number; use “1” if only one team exists • Plot: for each team, a unique numeric identifier for each plot, running sequentially from an initial plot number.

11. General Information:Level, Date(s), and Party • Level: available levels are 1-5, but we are only considering levels 2-3 for our current purposes (for Level 1-2 Plot Data form, select Level 2 option) • Start Date: use dd/mmm/yyyy (e.g., 18/JUN/2008) format • add End Date if different from start date • Party and Role: • all contributors to collection of data, with roles played

12. General Information:Soil Drainage • Identifies the natural drainage conditions of the soil and refers to the frequency and duration of wet periods. • Categories are defined in terms of: • actual moisture content (in excess of field moisture capacity), and • the extent of period during which excess water is present in the plant-root zone • Please consult the protocol for details!

13. General Information:Water (Level 2) • Information requested: • percent of plot submerged (at the time of inventory) • mean water depth (where present)

14. General Information:Aquatic Vegetation (Level 3) • Information requested: • percent of plot submerged (at the time of inventory) • mean water depth (cm, where present) • closest distance to shore (m)

15. Location (Levels 2 & 3) • General: overall location (general place name) • State and County • USGS Quadrangle (if used) • Place Names: more specific location name(s) • Reach: section of river where study is located (Level 2 only) • Land Owner • Data Confidentiality and Reason (Level 3 only)

16. GPS Location Data • Use of GPS for geocoordinates is required for Level 2 sampling; map may be used for Level 3 (please specify source) • GPS Receiver Location - within plot, give X and Y coordinates, typically plot origin • Specify Coordinate System (e.g., UTM) and Coord. Units (e.g., m) • Datum - critical info, because all geocoordinates are referenced to a datum, and many different datums are available: • we recommend NAD83/WGS84

17. GPS Location Data • UTM Zone (if using UTM system) • Lat or Northing (latitude in selected units or UTM-N [7-digit]) • Long or Easting (longitude in selected units or UTM-E [6-digit]) • Coordinate Accuracy - m radius, typically provided by receiver • GPS File Name - if you saved a waypoint or other file

18. Site Characteristics • Elevation - best taken from topographic maps or GIS, or by using properly calibrated altimeter • Slope - plot inclination in degrees (always positive) • Aspect - azimuth (in degrees) of direction plot faces • Compass Type - are readings magnetic or true (corrected for local declination)?

19. Plot Placement • Project Director or Plot Leader will make this determination.

20. Taxonomic Standard • Plant nomenclature is notoriously labile! • It is important to cite the authority (reference) used for the names you applied to plants, because this identifies the concepts behind the names. • Our current preference is Alan Weakley’s regional flora (currently 2006 version), but you may choose other standards, or possibly multiple standards!

21. Plot Diagram • This important diagram captures: • plot shape and dimensions • location of plot origin and marking posts (including X and Y coordinates of all posts relative to origin) • GPS location point • location and bearing of photo(s) • bearing of plot X-axis • locations of landmarks, such as streams, banks, fences, witness trees, etc.

22. Notes • These notes capture additional information about: • Layout (especially unusual features) • Plot Location - relocation information can be summarized here • Plot Rationale - why this particular location was chosen for the plot • Other Notes - typically, this field will capture information about disturbance type and severity

23. Additional Plot Data, Level 3 • Plot size and modules sampled must be specified! • Salinity • Additional information about soil (6 fields) • Classification information • Plot size (ares) and module numbers • Topographic Position, Hydrologic Regime, Landform Type • Cover by Strata/Canopy Height table

24. Other Data Forms: Headers • Fields at top of various other data forms: • Planted Woody Stem Data (Levels 2, {3}) • Natural Woody Stem Data (Levels 2, {3}) • Cover Data (Level 3) • Repeats information from Plot Data form: • essential for reuniting data forms if they become separated, so please fill this out as you begin recording data • There is an option for Height Cut-Off for Stems in Natural Woody Stem Data (explain if >10 cm). • Please add page numbering as needed.

25. Planted versus Natural Stems • The CVS-EEP Protocol for Recording Vegetation requires that a distinction is made between planted and natural woody stems. Which is which? • if there is positive confirmation (e.g., planting plan) or strong evidence (e.g., burlap shreds) that a stem was planted, then consider it planted…otherwise, consider it natural!

26. Planted Stem Data Entry:VBD versus VMD • For newly-constructed projects, planted woody stems are initially inventoried through collection of Vegetation Baseline Data (VBD): • In years following initial plot establishment, the protocol specifies collection of Vegetation Monitoring Data (VMD): • preprinted forms are provided to contractors with the most recent year’s data for planted woody stems in the plot (including a map of stems) • contractors update the VMD data form with current dimensions and status of planted woody stems

27. VBD Planted Stem Data Entry:Species & Source (Levels 2 & 3) • Species Name - use Latin binomials, following your taxonomic standard • Source - was planted material Transplanted, Live staked, Balled and burlapped, Potted, Tubling, Bare rooted, or Mechanically planted? http://www.life.uiuc.edu/edtech/entomology_slides/images/31067-linnaeus.jpg

28. VBD Planted Stem Data Entry:Coordinates (Levels 2 & 3) • X and Y Coordinates relative to plot origin (same system used to specify location of posts): • to nearest decimeter (i.e., to 0.1 m precision) • binned (rounded down) such that: • 0.0 - 0.099 m is 0.0m • 0.1 - 0.199 m is 0.1m • 0.2 - 0.299 m is 0.2m • and so on...

29. VBD Planted Stem Data Entry:Stem Dimensions (Levels 2 & 3) • ddh - diameter (mm) at one decimeter height - of largest of multiple stems, but smallest dimension if elliptical, also binned • Height - height (cm) to tallest perennating organ (typically a terminal bud), also binned • DBH - diameter in cm at breast height (1.37 m) for taller plants, also binned

30. Measure What When?

31. VBD Planted Stem Data Entry:Vigor and Damage (Levels 2 & 3) • Vigor - 4 (best) to 0 (dead) categories, plus Missing (for resurveys) • Damage - records observed injury to planted stems (categories on data form)

32. VBD Planted Stem Inventoryin the Field • Discussion and demonstration topic (please refer to “Level-1 Procedures and Techniques”)...

33. Natural Stem Data Entry: Seedlings, Saplings, and Trees (Levels 2 & 3) • Natural woody stems are tallied in three categories: • seedlings - less than 1.37 m in height and tallied by height classes (irrespective of diameter), may be subsampled* • recall that a height cut-off (in header) can be used to exclude tallies of stems below a certain height* • saplings - small stems tallied by DBH in two diameter classes, may be subsampled* • trees - larger stems tallied by DBH in several diameter classes (note: write actual DBH in cm for stems > 10 cm (or > 40 cm), not subsampled *use of subsampling and/or height cut-off for stems greater than 10 cm must be explained and must result in representative data!

34. Natural Stem Data Entry: Speciesand Collection (levels 2 & 3) • Species Name - use Latin binomials, following your taxonomic standard • Collection (c) – annotate this field with a slash (“/”) if a plant specimen is collected; if this specimen becomes a permanent record (pressed herbarium specimen), denote by changing the “/” to an “X”. http://www.life.uiuc.edu/edtech/entomology_slides/images/31067-linnaeus.jpg

35. Natural Stem Data Entry:Module Code (Levels 2 & 3) • For level 2, plots consist of a single module. • For level 3, it is possible for plots to have multiple modules, so the module within which stems are being tallied must be recorded: • if plot has multiple modules, then stem tallies will be recorded separately for each module (and as an aggregate for residual modules) - for each module, start a new list of woody species

36. Natural Stem Data Entry:Subsampling (levels 2 & 3) • Subsampling is possible for seedlings and/or saplings, by module and species - used when stems are sufficiently dense that subsampling would provide a satisfactory estimate of total density (also a big time-saver!). • Select a reasonable percentage subsample (typically 10, 20, or 50 % of plot), and tally stems only within this “strip” along edge(s) of plot. • Supersampling is also a possibility (typically for tree stems)!

37. Natural Stem Data Entry:Stem Tallies (levels 2 & 3) • Numbers of stems are tallied separately by species for seedlings (by height classes) and for samplings and trees (by DBH classes). • Use “dot-box” notation system for efficient tallies! • Remember, for level 3, if plot has multiple modules, then stem tallies will be recorded separately for each module (and as an aggregate for residual modules). • We discuss in the following slides how to deal with multiple stems belonging to the same plant!

38. Multiple Stems:Planted Individuals • Planted stems • as in Level 1, each plant is treated as a single individual, with appropriate diameter and height information assigned to that individual: • ddh, height, and DBH may be determined for different stems of the same plant, but these attributes are assigned to the individual plant

39. Multiple Stems:Natural Individuals • If no stem of a given individual achieves breast height (137 cm), then tally this plant as a single individual (as is done with planted woody stems) in the appropriate seedling height class. • If at least one stem of a given individual achieves breast height, then follow the standard rules for tallying woody stems for Levels 4 & 5: • stems that emerge below 50 cm and reach breast height are tallied separately in appropriate DBH classes • when multiple branches emerge above 50 cm, then only the dominant branch is tallied in the appropriate DBH class, even if other branches achieve breast height

40. Natural Stem Inventoryin the Field • Discussion and demonstration topic...

41. How many stems?

42. Determining Height

43. Determining DBHwith Biltmore Stick

44. Determining DBHwith d-tape

45. Cover Data Entry: Speciesand Collection (level 3) • Species Name - use Latin binomials, following your taxonomic standard • Collection (c) – annotate this field with a slash (“/”) if a plant specimen is collected; if this specimen becomes a permanent record (pressed herbarium specimen), denote by changing the “/” to an “X”. http://www.life.uiuc.edu/edtech/entomology_slides/images/31067-linnaeus.jpg

46. Cover Data Entry:Cover Classes by Module (Level 3) • Column headers are module numbers. • For each species, record its cover class (see listing of classes at bottom of data form) in each module: • a given species is listed only once on this form! • Cover is based on a “shadow projection” concept, using the canopy outline. • Record data for species achieving at least 5% cover in at least one module. Recording of cover for other species is optional, but may include species of concern (rare taxa, exotic invasives).

47. Cover Data Entry:Cover by Strata (level 3) • Strata are user-defined on the Plot Data sheet (height ranges and actual percent cover). • Using the pre-defined strata, assign cover classes for each species to appropriate strata [T, S, H, (F), (A)]: • important rule: each plant of a given species contributes all of its cover to the stratum in which it has the greatest cover!

48. Cover Data Inventoryin the Field • Discussion and demonstration topic...

49. DeterminingCover Classes

50. Cover is based onshadow projection!