Victorian Alpine Plot Network (Alpine Summit Plots): Plot Details - Spatial Coordinates for Vegetation Data, South-East Highlands, Australia

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Abstract: This Victorian Alpine Plot Network Vegetation Data Package comprises spatial data for vegetation surveys (composition and life-form) in the South-East Highlands, Australia. Twenty 1 metre squared quadrats are situated along each of four varying length permanent transects established on mountain summits. The Alpine Summit plots study, which commenced in 2001, forms part of the collection of data packages by the Victorian Alpine Plot Network. 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: A global climate change and mountain environments monitoring network - The Global Observation Research Initiative in Alpine Environments (GLORIA; http://www.gloria.ac.at) - was established in 2001 to detect long-term vegetation change on alpine mountain summits. Observations focus on changes in species richness with respect to local temperatures and altitude. Five mountain summit survey sites were established in the Kosciuszko National Park in 2004 and several in the Victorian Alpine National Park in 2006. There are currently 14 such summits, encompassing the geographic distribution of high alpine summits in the Australian Alps, with each to be surveyed at 5-year intervals. Study extent: Vegetation surveys were carried out at these plots in 2004, 2012 and 2017. Project funding: Parks Victoria, Mt Hotham Alpine Resort. 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.