Investigating Tuart Woodlands

1. Investigating Tuart Woodlands Tuart Survey Training Friends of Trigg Bushland Inc www.triggbushland.org.au Updated 2011

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’

4. 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

10. Data collection sheet

11. Fieldmap with 10m grid

12. GPS setup • Ensure satellite reception and check error – should be less than 5 metres. • Take photograph of GPS showing current date and time before beginning. Note: if this is not done, all data collected will be invalid. • Ensure GPS is set to correct datum (WGS 84) and measurement is in metres – ask for assistance.

13. Record photo of GPS showing date and time

14. 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

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

16. Measured features & techniques • Tree height • Tree diameter • Number of trunks • Growth Stage • Tree health • Canopy density • Understorey disturbance • Weed invasion and major species

17. Measuring tree height with stick method

18. 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

19. Number of trunks • Count all trunks coming 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,

20. Example: Single trunk, recovery from fire.

21. Example: 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.

22. Example: Twin trunk healthy Tuart

23. Growth stage • Seedling – juvenile leaf, soft wood • Juvenile - adult leaf, soft wood • Mature – adult leaf, hard wood • Regrowth – juvenile leaf, hard wood

24. Juvenile leaf – heart shaped Mature leaf – sickle shaped

25. Tree health • Healthy • Stressed • Dead

26. Measuring canopy density • Estimate in increments of 10% • Provides indication of health status • Affects plant and animal populations in understorey

27. An example to show how you can estimate the density by looking at a small area.After Compton (1962)

28. Example: 30% canopy

29. Example: 50% canopy

30. Example: 90% canopy

31. Understorey disturbance • Estimate using scale of low, moderate or high • Note extent of weed invasion • Identify major weeds – you will receive assistance and learn the major weeds that are likely to be present. • Note physical disturbance, eg, earthworks, pathways, rubbish

32. Example: Seedling with low disturbance of ground cover

33. Example: Mature Tuart with high disturbance

34. Topics for discussion • Purpose and methodology overview • Tools and measuring techniques • Recording the data • Ground rules • Progress to date

35. 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)

36. GPS tracks for 3 teams (10m grid)

37. Tabular data in Excel

38. Topics for Discussion • Purpose and methodology overview • Tools and measuring techniques • Recording the data • Ground rules • Progress to date

39. Safety Ground Rules • Stay in teams. • Know where you are. • Have a mobile phone. • Wear long pants and stout shoes. (School clothing is not appropriate as it may be damaged.) • 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.

40. Ground Rules: Key Points to take away • It is important to make clear records – data must be written neatly and be accurate • Dress and act in a manner that will ensure your safety • Although it is good fun, tuart mapping is a scientific exercise and attention must be kept to the task at hand.

41. Topics for Discussion • Purpose and methodology overview • Tools and measuring techniques • Recording the data • Ground rules • Progress to date

42. 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

43. King Albert progress: • Data collection not yet complete • Data entry and validation in progress

44. Elliot progress: • Data collection commenced

45. St Mary’s progress: • Data collection commenced

46. The end – - thank you !