Victorian Tall Eucalypt Forest Plot Network: Bird Point Counts Associated with Fire Severity, Central Highlands of Victoria, Australia, 2004-2011
Abstract: The Victorian Tall Eucalypt Forest Plot Network Bird Point Count Data contains transect-based bird fauna data collected annually at a subset of 81 of the 175 permanent 3 hectare plots studied by the plot network in the Central Highlands of Victoria, Australia. Fire severity scores are also collected.
These data were aggregated and published in the book Lindenmayer et. al., 2014. Biodiversity and Environmental Change: Monitoring, Challenges and Direction. CSIRO Publishing. p. 545. This data package is comprised of subsets of two other Victorian Tall Eucalypt Forest Plot Network data packages, and hence should be considered a derivative product.
This is part of a much larger dataset that began in 1983, when the Victorian Tall Eucalypt Forest Plot Network research plots commenced. A synopsis of related data packages which have been collected as part of the Victorian Tall Eucalypt Forest Plot Network’s full program is provided at http://doi.org/10.25911/5c4445118125d.
Project funding: These data were curated and published with strategic funds from a TERN initiative to publish long term data packages from the book Lindenmayer et al. 2014 Biodiversity and Environmental Change: Monitoring, Challenges and Direction.
Between 2012 and 2018 the Victorian Tall Ecucalypt Plot Network has been part of the Long Term Ecological Research Network (LTERN). This work was supported by the Australian Government’s Terrestrial Ecosystems Research Network (www.tern.org.au) – an Australian research infrastructure project established under the National Collaborative Research Infrastructure Strategy and Education Infrastructure Fund–Super Science Initiative through the (now) Department of Education and Training.
Type
collection
Title
Victorian Tall Eucalypt Forest Plot Network: Bird Point Counts Associated with Fire Severity, Central Highlands of Victoria, Australia, 2004-2011
Alternate Title
Victorian Tall Eucalypt Forest Plot Network: Bird Point Counts Associated With Fire Severity, 2004–2011
Collection Type
Dataset
Access Privileges
Long Term Ecological Research Network
DOI - Digital Object Identifier
10.25911/5c44586c30d69
Metadata Language
English
Data Language
English
Brief Description
These data were aggregated and published in the book Lindenmayer et. al., 2014. Biodiversity and Environmental Change: Monitoring, Challenges and Direction. CSIRO Publishing. p. 545.
This data package is comprised of subsets of two other Victorian Tall Eucalypt Forest Plot Network data packages, and hence should be considered a derivative product.
A synopsis of related data packages which have been collected as part of the Victorian Tall Eucalypt Forest Plot Network’s full program is provided at http://doi.org/10.25911/5c4445118125d.
Full Description
Abstract: The Victorian Tall Eucalypt Forest Plot Network Bird Point Count Data contains transect-based bird fauna data collected annually at a subset of 81 of the 175 permanent 3 hectare plots studied by the plot network in the Central Highlands of Victoria, Australia. Fire severity scores are also collected.
These data were aggregated and published in the book Lindenmayer et. al., 2014. Biodiversity and Environmental Change: Monitoring, Challenges and Direction. CSIRO Publishing. p. 545. This data package is comprised of subsets of two other Victorian Tall Eucalypt Forest Plot Network data packages, and hence should be considered a derivative product.
This is part of a much larger dataset that began in 1983, when the Victorian Tall Eucalypt Forest Plot Network research plots commenced. A synopsis of related data packages which have been collected as part of the Victorian Tall Eucalypt Forest Plot Network’s full program is provided at http://doi.org/10.25911/5c4445118125d.
Project funding: These data were curated and published with strategic funds from a TERN initiative to publish long term data packages from the book Lindenmayer et al. 2014 Biodiversity and Environmental Change: Monitoring, Challenges and Direction.
Between 2012 and 2018 the Victorian Tall Ecucalypt Plot Network has been part of the Long Term Ecological Research Network (LTERN). This work was supported by the Australian Government’s Terrestrial Ecosystems Research Network (www.tern.org.au) – an Australian research infrastructure project established under the National Collaborative Research Infrastructure Strategy and Education Infrastructure Fund–Super Science Initiative through the (now) Department of Education and Training.
Methods
Plot set-up
1
Each long term monitoring site is 3 ha, with monitoring occurring only on the central hectare which is usually square, being 100 m x 100 m. Occasionally sites are 200 m x 50 m where they back onto a gully.
The central hectare “the site” has a transect line running up the middle from 0 m (usually on the road edge) to the back of the site (100 m mark), perpendicular to the road. Along the transect are three 10m x 10m plots, located at 10-20 m (plot 1), 50-60 m (plot 2) and 90-100 m (plot 3). These straddle the transect, 5 m either side. The first plot is set back from the road to reduce roadside influences. The central transect is flagged. Bird counts are conducted at 0, 50 m and 100 m along the central 100 m transect.
The central hectare “the site” has a transect line running up the middle from 0 m (usually on the road edge) to the back of the site (100 m mark), perpendicular to the road. Along the transect are three 10m x 10m plots, located at 10-20 m (plot 1), 50-60 m (plot 2) and 90-100 m (plot 3). These straddle the transect, 5 m either side. The first plot is set back from the road to reduce roadside influences. The central transect is flagged. Bird counts are conducted at 0, 50 m and 100 m along the central 100 m transect.
Bird Point Count Surveys
2
Binoculars
Field sheet
Field sheet
Birds are counted using repeated time-controlled (5min) point interval counts conducted at 0, 50 m and 100 m along a permanent 100 m long transect every year. These transect points are not intended to represent different sites, but rather to increase the chances of observing the presence of birds at each site.
Starting at dawn, and working through until 10-11 am depending on the temperature (on hotter days the birds stop calling earlier). Each site has 3x (five minute) counts of all the birds seen and heard during the five minute period. Species type, abundance and distance away are recorded as well as time and weather variables. A separate data sheet is filled in for each plot.
Starting at dawn, and working through until 10-11 am depending on the temperature (on hotter days the birds stop calling earlier). Each site has 3x (five minute) counts of all the birds seen and heard during the five minute period. Species type, abundance and distance away are recorded as well as time and weather variables. A separate data sheet is filled in for each plot.
Fire Severity Data
3
Field sheet
Within months of the February 2009 Black Saturday fires, a number of variables were collected.
Fire severity – scorch/consumption of strata:
Three readings were taken on each site, one in each 10 m x 10 m plot. The readings referred only to the vegetation within each plot, not an average of the whole site. At each plot, the forest was divided into four strata based on height:
1) 0-2 m Ground cover and low shrubs
2) 2-10 m Shrub layer and small trees
3) 10-30 m Understorey trees
4) 30+ m Overstorey trees
Within each 10 m x 10 m plot, an estimate was made of the amount (%) of each stratum that was:
1) Green/unburnt
2) Scorched
3) Consumed
The total of all three burn classes above should equal 100%. A fire severity scale was then developed. This was initially a scale of 1-3, then 1-4 and finally 1-5 as the severity was divided. (The Victorian Department of Sustainability and Environment scale is similar, however it runs reverse to ours with 6=unburnt and 1=highest severity.)
For 0-2 m Ground cover and low shrubs:
1) Unburnt
2) Light mosaic ‘trickle burn’
3) Consumed/scorched
4) Consumed
5) Consumed
For 2-10 m Shrub layer and small trees:
1) Unburnt
2) Patchy scorch
3) Consumed/scorched
4) Consumed
5) Consumed
For 10-30 m Understorey trees:
1) Unburnt
2) Unburnt
3) Mostly scorched
4) Consumed/scorched
5) Consumed
For 30+ m Overstorey trees:
1) Unburnt
2) Unburnt
3) Unburnt/patchy scorch
4) Scorched
5) Consumed
Scorch and consumption refers to fine fuels only such as leaves and fine twigs.
Fire severity – scorch/consumption of strata:
Three readings were taken on each site, one in each 10 m x 10 m plot. The readings referred only to the vegetation within each plot, not an average of the whole site. At each plot, the forest was divided into four strata based on height:
1) 0-2 m Ground cover and low shrubs
2) 2-10 m Shrub layer and small trees
3) 10-30 m Understorey trees
4) 30+ m Overstorey trees
Within each 10 m x 10 m plot, an estimate was made of the amount (%) of each stratum that was:
1) Green/unburnt
2) Scorched
3) Consumed
The total of all three burn classes above should equal 100%. A fire severity scale was then developed. This was initially a scale of 1-3, then 1-4 and finally 1-5 as the severity was divided. (The Victorian Department of Sustainability and Environment scale is similar, however it runs reverse to ours with 6=unburnt and 1=highest severity.)
For 0-2 m Ground cover and low shrubs:
1) Unburnt
2) Light mosaic ‘trickle burn’
3) Consumed/scorched
4) Consumed
5) Consumed
For 2-10 m Shrub layer and small trees:
1) Unburnt
2) Patchy scorch
3) Consumed/scorched
4) Consumed
5) Consumed
For 10-30 m Understorey trees:
1) Unburnt
2) Unburnt
3) Mostly scorched
4) Consumed/scorched
5) Consumed
For 30+ m Overstorey trees:
1) Unburnt
2) Unburnt
3) Unburnt/patchy scorch
4) Scorched
5) Consumed
Scorch and consumption refers to fine fuels only such as leaves and fine twigs.
File Descriptions
lvic_bird_point_count_and_fire_severity_book_data_p364t619.csv
| common_name |
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| fire_cat |
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| fire_severity |
| ||||||||||||||
| observed |
| ||||||||||||||
| plot |
| ||||||||||||||
| repeat_visit |
| ||||||||||||||
| scientific_name |
| ||||||||||||||
| site_number |
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| year |
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Contact Email
david.lindenmayer@anu.edu.au
Contact Address
Fenner School of Environment & Society
ANU College of Medicine, Biology & Environment
Frank Fenner Building 141
Linnaeus Way
CANBERRA, ACT , 0200
Australia
Contact Phone Number
+61 2 612 50654;
+61 427 770 593
Contact Fax Number
+61 2 6125 0746
Principal Investigator
David Lindenmayer
Supervisors
David Lindenmayer
Collaborators
Melbourne Water;
Parks Victoria;
Warwick Papst;
David Blair;
Lachlan McBurney
Fields of Research
0501 - Ecological Applications;
0602 - Ecology
Keywords
GCMD:Earth Science > Biological Classification > Animals/Vertebrates > Birds;
GCMD:Earth Science > Biosphere > Ecological Dynamics > Fire Ecology;
LTERN Monitoring Theme:Fire;
LTERN Monitoring Theme:Birds;
keyword:Birds;
keyword:Bird point count;
keyword:Avifauna;
keyword:Fire severity;
Victorian Tall Eucalypt Forest;
Bird Point Counts Associated With Fire Severity
Type of Research Activity
Strategic basic research
Date Coverage
2011
2004
Geospatial Location
Central Highlands of Victoria, Australia
text
northlimit = -37.342523; southlimit = -37.919069; westlimit = 145.477922; eastLimit = 146.195374
iso19139dcmiBox
Date of data creation
2015-04-28
Year of data publication
2015
Creator(s) for Citation
Lindenmayer
David
Publisher for Citation
Long Term Ecological Research Network (LTERN), ANU Data Commons, The Australian National University
Publications
9780643108578
Lindenmayer et. al., 2014. Biodiversity and Environmental Change: Monitoring, Challenges and Direction. CSIRO Publishing.
Biodiversity and Environmental Change: Monitoring, Challenges and Direction
isbn
Related Websites
ANU Open Research. Long Term Ecological Research Network (LTERN) collection.
https://hdl.handle.net/1885/130861
Other Related Identifiers
MorphoId:ltern.108;
PackageId:364
Access Rights
Data collected prior to 2012 is to be published with mediated access
Co-authorship with the data provider (Professor David Lindenmayer) of any publication of research utilising this data is an expected outcome.
The data provider requests consultation, including a summary of the proposed research and intended use, before publication of research utilising this data is possible.
Access Rights Type
Restricted
Rights held in and over the data
AusGoal Restrictive Licence - This licence has been developed specifically for material that may contain personal or other confidential information. It may also be used for other reasons, including material to be licenced under some form of limiting or restrictive condition.
Licence Type
AusGoalRestrictive - AusGoal Restrictive Licence
Licence
LTERN Deed: 48
Date of execution: 2017-07-10
Retention Period
Indefinitely
Data Management Plan
No
Status: Published
Published to:
Published to:
- Australian National University
- Australian National Data Service
Related items
- hasAssociationWith:
Victorian Tall Eucalypt Forest Plot Network data packages, 1983-2018 [anudc:5557] - hasAssociationWith:
Mr Lachlan McBurney [anudc:5601] - hasAssociationWith:
David Blair [anudc:5577] - hasAssociationWith:
Professor David Lindenmayer [anudc:5580] - hasAssociationWith:
Parks Victoria [anudc:5639] - hasAssociationWith:
Melbourne Water [anudc:5635] - hasAssociationWith:
Warwick Papst [anudc:5628]