Victorian Alpine Plot Network (Alpine Long Term Monitoring - Community Changes): Vegetation Data, South-east Highlands, Australia, 2012–2013

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Abstract: The Victorian Alpine Plot Network vegetation data package contains vegetation data collected at a sub-set of the 481 long term monitoring plots which have been established in Australian Alps and in Tasmania. The sampling regime within the Victorian Network generally consists of multiple randomly positioned transects within sites, (rather than ‘plots’ sensu stricto), with each site, and/or transect geo-located. Point quadrats are taken at fixed intervals along each transect. The number of transects within sites, and sampling frequency varies from annual to decadal, depending on site and purpose. This general array of sampling transects, point quadrats along transects and floristic quadrats is consistent between grassland and snowpatch monitoring sites, although the number of transects and floristic quadrats needed to detect change in key variables (vegetation cover, bare ground, etc) at each site varies over time. There are also long-term monitoring sites in wetlands.

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 https://doi.org/10.25911/5c11c3d283b0e Sampling method of the Carr and Turner long-term monitoring plots: At the Carr and Turner sites, there are fixed plots, each 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 (Figure 2.2); 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. Study extent: Long-term vegetation monitoring sites are a feature of the research and management infrastructure of the Australian alpine region. Sites have been established at various times for various reasons across the mainland Australian Alps and in Tasmania, with the explicit aim of documenting long-term changes in ecosystem composition and structure in relation to disturbance (Carr and Turner 1959a; b; Wimbush and Costin 1979; Wahren et al. 1994; Kirkpatrick and Bridle 1999; Scherrer and Pickering 2005). In the Victorian Alps, monitoring sites were first established in 1944-45 and the number of sites was expanded considerably in the 1970s and 1980s. These sites have been used to document long-term ecological change in relation to disturbance (e.g. livestock grazing; fire) and land use (e.g. nature conservation; ski resort development). Additional sample areas were established on a subset of these sites in 2011, to monitor long-term changes in invertebrates and plant genetic diversity. Following the fires of 1998 and 2003 additional monitoring sites were established to quantify patterns of burning across the alpine landscape, and to monitor post-fire regeneration. The development of our understanding of the ecology of alpine environments, especially our understanding of fundamental ecological processes, has been influenced enormously by data from these long term monitoring sites. The sites will continue to provide valuable data in the coming century as researchers and managers tackle problems such as climate change, potentially novel fire regimes and the increasing abundance of alien plants and animals. The Victorian Alpine Network of long-term monitoring sites includes: 1) The long-term plots established by Mrs Maise Carr and Prof. John Turner at ‘Rocky Valley’ and ‘Pretty Valley’ on the Bogong High Plains in the 1940s (Carr and Turner 1959b; Wahren et al. 1994). These pioneering plots were established to enable the documentation of long-term changes in select vegetation types. This far-sighted research effort grew out of concerns that arose in the 1930s about the condition of the high mountain catchments, as a consequence of fire and livestock grazing. 2) Monitoring sites established in a variety of vegetation types across the Victorian Alps. These sites were established to allow monitoring of long-term vegetation dynamics at a wider array of grassland sites, and in plant communities that were not sampled by the Carr and Turner plots. These long-term monitoring sites complement the detailed mapping of vegetation communities undertaken by McDougall (1982). At the time the sites were established, cattle grazing was wide-spread across the Victorian Alps, the Alpine National Park was mooted or in its infancy, ski resort development was expanding, and data were needed on long-term vegetation dynamics, and vegetation state or condition in relation to land use. 3) Post-fire monitoring sites established in various vegetation types following the landscape-scale fires of 1998 and 2003. Landscape scale fire is rare in the alpine environment, and these sites were established specifically to take advantage of the opportunities presented by these infrequent events, so that patterns of burning and post-fire regeneration of vegetation could be documented. 4) Additional sampling sites established on a select set of the long term-sites sites on the Bogong High Plains to survey invertebrate diversity and plant genetics. The aim of this suite of sites is to evaluate the effects of climate change on select components of the biodiversity of alpine ecosystems. Project funding: Between 2012 and 2018 this project was part of, and funded through the Long Term Ecological Research Network (LTERN) a facility within the Terrestrial Ecosystem Research Network (TERN) and supported by the Australian Government through the National Collaborative Research Infrastructure Strategy.