public read cn=submitters,o=unaffiliated,dc=ecoinformatics,dc=org all cn=pn_vic_alpine,o=unaffiliated,dc=ecoinformatics,dc=org read Dr Ary Hoffmann The University of Melbourne Plot Leader

Bio21 Institute, Departments of Zoology and Genetics The University of Melbourne Melbourne Victoria 3010

03 8344 2282 ary@unimelb.edu.au The Victorian Alpine Plot Network Plot-data Package contains plot-data collected at eighty-nine sites situated in the Australian Alps. Randomly positioned transects are situated within sites rather than ‘plots’ sensu stricto. The number of transects within sites, and sampling frequency varies from annual to decadal, depending on site and purpose. This is part of a much larger dataset that spans from 1944, when plot were set up to document long-term changes in ecosystem composition and structure in relation to disturbance (see methods for more information). The Victorian Alpine Plot Network research plots are revisited on a 2-10 years basis. A synopsis of related data packages which have been collected as part of the Victorian Alpine Plot Network’s full program is provided at http://www.ltern.org.au/index.php/ltern-plot-networks/victorian-alpine Geographic Plot details Plot setup Spatial coordinates Keywords 0501 ANZSRC-FOR CC-BY-4_0 Special Conditions: Data users must request permission from the Data Provider before access to latitudinal and longitudinal data is granted. South Eastern Highlands, Victoria, Australia 146.41728 147.40598 -36.73575 -37.49639 Dr John Morgan La Trobe University Plant Ecologist

Department of Ecology, Evolution, and Environment La Trobe University Bundoora VIC 3086

+61 3 9479 2226 j.morgan@latrobe.edu.au 1403149765536

The Victorian Alpine Plot Network Plot-data Package contains plot-data collected at eighty-nine sites situated in the Australian Alps. Randomly positioned transects are situated within sites rather than ‘plots’ sensu stricto. Each site, and/or transect geo-located, and point quadrats are taken at fixed intervals along each transect using a 4 mm diameter steel pin inserted vertically into the vegetation. The number of transects within sites, and sampling frequency varies from annual to decadal, depending on site and purpose. The number of transects within sites, and sampling frequency varies from annual to decadal, depending on site and purpose.

4 mm diameter steel pins

Long Term Vegetation monitoring sites - grasslands, heathlands, snowpatch herbfields and wetlands: Establishment of these long-term monitoring sites commenced in the late 1970’s on the Bogong High Plains. In ensuing decades, more sites have been established on the Bogong High Plains, Dargo High Plains and Holmes/Wellington (Wahren et al. 1994; Wahren et al. 1999; Wahren et al. 2001a; Wahren et al. 2001c; Williams et al. 2012; Wahren et al. 2013). Sites have been established in all of the major vegetation types – grasslands, heathlands, snowpatch herbfields and wetlands. In the grasslands, each site is ca. 0.5-1 ha in area, with 10-12 10 m transects per site. Transects are located randomly within sites and point quadrats are taken at 20 cm intervals along each transect. This gives a total of 50 points per 10m transect, and 500-600 points per site. All species touching the pin are recorded, along with the state of the ground surface (whether bare, or covered by litter). At present there are 17 monitoring sites established in grassland on the Bogong High Plains and five at Holmes and Wellington Plains. A similar array of transects within sites has been established at 45 snowpatch herbfields sites across the Bogong High Plains. At each site the sampling regime is the same as for grasslands – 10 x 10 m transects, with 50 point quadrats per transect. Complementary floristic data are also collected at each site from five to fifteen 3 x 2 m quadrats that are randomly located within each snow patch. Quadrat size was determined using species-area relationships for a range of quadrat sizes (0.1-20 m2; (Swengel 2001)). Within each quadrat, all species are identified and the cover of each is estimated visually using the Braun-Blanquet scale (Wahren et al. 2001a). This general array of sampling transects, point quadrats along transects and floristic quadrats is consistent between grassland and snowpatch monitoring sites. However, the number of transects and floristic quadrats needed to detect change at each site varies. The optimal number per site has been determined by power analysis to adequately sample the composition and structure of the grassland and snowpatch communities, and detect change in key variables (vegetation cover, bare ground, etc) over time. There are also long-term monitoring sites in wetlands. These include two sites at the head of Middle Creek on the Bogong High Plains.

At the Carr and Turner sites, there are fixed plots, each 0.05–0.1 ha in area. At the ‘Pretty Valley’ site, there is one plot that has been fenced (and thus ungrazed by livestock) since 1946; adjacent to this plot there is an unfenced plot, grazed by livestock (mainly cattle) from the mid 19th Century until 2005. At the ‘Rocky Valley’ site there is a 4 ha fenced area, which has excluded livestock since 1945-6. Inside there are monitoring plots located in open heathland, closed heathland and snowpatch herbfield vegetation types. There are companion plots, grazed by domestic livestock until 2005, located in equivalent vegetation types outside the fence. There is a total of 8 plots. The four corners of each plot are marked with steel droppers or fence posts, and each is geolocated. Within each plot there are multiple transects, the ends of which are fixed with sturdy 5 cm x 5 cm wooden pegs. The length, number of and distance between transects within plots varied from plot to plot at the time of establishment; this arrangement has been preserved. There are 10-20 transects per plot, each 2-15 m long, and ca 1-1.5 m apart. Point quadrats were initially taken at intervals of 2 feet (24 inches); sampling interval was converted to 50 cm in 1979. There is a total of 600–1000 point quadrats per plot. Measurements were taken at each plot annually from 1945/6–1951, then once or twice per decade thereafter (Wahren et al. 1994). There was a full sampling of all plots in 1979, and both Pretty Valley plots have been monitored more or less annually is since 1979, and the Rocky Valley plots every 5 years. The last full sampling of all eight plots was in 2013. This is part of a much larger dataset that spans from 1944, when plot were set up to document long-term changes in ecosystem composition and structure in relation to disturbance (see methods for more information). The Victorian Alpine Plot Network research plots are revisited on a 2-10 years basis. 1403149765536 Principal Investigator vltm_spatial_coordinates_p245t511.csv vltm_spatial_coordinates_p245t511.csv 1 0 \r\n column , ecogrid://knb/ltern2.239.1 cn=submitters,o=unaffiliated,dc=ecoinformatics,dc=org all cn=pn_vic_alpine,o=unaffiliated,dc=ecoinformatics,dc=org read uid=belbin,o=unaffiliated,dc=ecoinformatics,dc=org read sitecode Site code Character sitename Site name Character region Victorian alpine region Character yrest Year established - commencement of monitoring YYYY utm_e Easting (Zone WGS84/ 55S) meter whole utm_n Northing (Zone WGS84/ 55S) meter whole datum Datum Character altitude Altitude meter natural plantcommunity Plant community Character area_sqm_ Area of plant community squareMeter whole aspect Aspect degree whole slope_ Slope (percentage) number whole nrtransects Number of transects at monitoring site number natural cbonrpointsvary cbonrpointsvary number real trstartdist Transect start distance (where spatial data is collected along a transect, e.g. a line intercept) centimeter real trdistbwpoints Distance between points along a transect (generally 20cm for point quadrats) centimeter real