Describing your study site
Describing the environment you are working in provides Museum scientists with a measure of habitat complexity. This complexity measure captures aspects of the environment that have been shown to be important in shaping invertebrate communities.
Before commencing any study you must mark out your site and describe its features. Photo: J Gollan © Australian Museum
Always take a digital photograph (if possible) of your study area. These become a valuable visual tool for you and others to assess the area in the future.
What you will need
- Tape measure
- Coloured flagging tape
- Wooden stakes
- Large hammer
- Habitat assessment data sheet and pencil
- GPS (if available) or topographic map (1:50 000)
- Camera (if available)
Method
- Choose and mark out your site. So that you can find your site again, tie a piece of flagging tape to the closest tree at each of the four corners (use wooden stakes if necessary eg heathlands or grasslands).
- Record habitat features using the form provided.
- Record geographic positions of sites as accurately as possible. Use a GPS if possible, otherwise a topographic map (1:50 000) will suffice. It is also useful to record how you got to the site and any obvious features nearby. For example, locality 1 is on the eastern side of the Pacific Highway, 43 km from a Caltex Station. This kind of information is useful for finding your way back to the sites.
