Chapter 3. Vegetation

Along each target habitat transect, a series of random vegetation points have been established for the purpose of conducting comprehensive vegetation data collection. Random vegetation point codes & geographic position information can be observed within the introduction of this manual in table 1. To install and gather data from a prescribed vegetation quadrat point follow the procedure below.

Equipment

1. Inclinometer
2. Measuring tape (50 m)
3. Vegetation field identification reference
4. Clipboard
5. Pencils & sharpener
6. Field record sheet
7. Boundary marker flagging
8. Compass
9. Range pole
10. Small marker board
11. Camera & film
12. Marker pen

1. With a tape measure, measure 10 metres from the mid-point or random point, to the left or right.
2. Measure another 10 metres at right angles from the current position. Place a mark using flagging to establish the first corner of the quadrat. NB: Use a compass to obtain bearings when establishing right angles of quadrat.
3. From this point measure at right angles 20 metres & put in the second marker.
4. Repeat this process for the next two corners of the quadrat (see diagram below).

5. Once the vegetation quadrat has been installed it is time to measure individual plants within the prescribed area. Utilise the Field record sheet to record plant height, width and breadth. NB: use a different data sheet for each identified strata. (Height layer)
6. As a team, establish the three main height stratum within the apparent vegetation community. Strata classification is established using common height details, for example; 0 to 1m, 1 to 5m & 5 to 10m (see diagram below).

7. Once the team has established the height stratum, measure the height, width and breadth of each individual within that particular stratum.
8. Identify the relevant vegetation species in the field. If this is not possible, give the species a code and take a sample of the plant for future identification. NB: include all plants whose canopy is overhanging the quadrat by 50 % or more.
9. On the completion of data collection, a photo-point will be recorded within each quadrat. This can be achieved by standing on a “team specified” quadrat corner (facing into the quadrat) and taking a photo. NB: Quadrat photographs need to be taken in a standard way with a manual, 35 mm SLR camera using a 50 mm lens.
10. Select an area which best represents the quadrat. That is, an area that shows the plant species and structure of the vegetation type that is being sampled.
11. Use a range pole and attach a white board target marked with the following information, at a height of 1.5m, and placed in a central position.
    1. Quadrat code
    2. Observers
    3. Date
12. Photograph the target and the surrounding vegetation from a point 10 metres away, with the camera centered on the whiteboard and focused on the vegetation behind the whiteboard. Use a shutter speed of 125th of a second or 60th of a second and an F stop of 16 or 22 to maximise the depth of field (if there is enough light). If there isn’t sufficient light for these settings, use your own judgment, bearing in mind that less than a 60th of a second can be affected by hand shaking and an F stop of less than 8 will affect depth of field. In composing the picture maximise the amount of vegetation you see and minimise the amount of sky.
13. Use the camera's light meter effectively by taking the reading of the vegetation only. NB: Take only horizontal photographs, not vertical.