Environment and Resource Management

Survey and mapping

Regional ecosystem 11.9.5, <em>Acacia harpophylla</em> (brigalow)<br /> and <em>Casuarina cristata</em> (belah)

Regional ecosystem 11.9.5, Acacia harpophylla (brigalow)
and Casuarina cristata (belah)

The Herbarium has been producing high quality vegetation maps since the early 1970's. These maps have accurate spatial and point data on the distribution and species composition of vegetation communities and regional ecosystems. Survey data is compiled between scales of 1:50,000 and 1:250,000 and the mapping is prepared at a scale of 1:100,000 for most of Queensland. The survey and mapping includes a pre-clearing coverage, as well as remnant vegetation data for the years 1997, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2003, 2005 and 2006. Description of vegetation, ecology and statistics are also documented. Site data are available from the database CORVEG.

Vegetation and regional ecosystem mapping for more than 85% of Queensland has been completed for both pre-clearing and remnant extent at a scale of 1:100,000. Currently, the Wet Tropics bioregion and part of Southeast Queensland are mapped at a scale of 1:50,000.

The survey and mapping of vegetation communities and regional ecosystems of Queensland provides information for regional groups, non-government organisations, government departments, local government and business, for planning and management purposes. The information will assist authorities at local, regional, State and national levels in achieving ecologically sustainable outcomes in biodiversity and the protection of the natural environment. Ecologically sustainable development requires research and knowledge into many environmental variables, including the qualities and characteristics of ecosystems.

The Queensland Herbarium's botanical information and ongoing research into Queensland's plants and plant communities, is complemented by the extensive mapping program. The Herbarium's plant specimen collection is essential to the survey and mapping program and is enhanced as field survey collections are incorporated in the Herbarium's collections.

Minimum scale for regional ecosystem and remnant mapping

Pre-clearing and remnant regional ecosystem mapping over the majority of Queensland is produced at a scale of 1:100,000. At this scale, the minimum remnant polygon area is 5 hectares or minimum remnant width of 75 metres. The size limits refer to remnant vegetation cover. Therefore a smaller individual polygon of a regional ecosystem could be mapped if it was contiguous with a larger area of remnant vegetation.

Regional ecosystem linework reproduced at a scale greater than 1:100,000, except in designated areas, should be used as a guide only. The precision of polygon boundaries or positional accuracy of linework is 100 metres.

Parts of coastal Queensland and certified map amendments are frequently mapped at a larger scale. These areas generally have better information (eg. detailed local government mapping), more vegetation landscape diversity and development is usually at a finer scale.

Refer to Methodology for survey and mapping of regional ecosystems and vegetation communities in Queensland for further details about scale specifications.

Progress of the survey and mapping program

The survey and mapping of vegetation communities and regional ecosystems for more than two-thirds of Queensland has been completed for both pre-clearing and remnant vegetation distributions at a scale of 1:100,000. Part of Southeast Queensland is mapped at a scale of 1:50,000. The Wet Tropics bioregion has been remapped at 1:50,000 scale. The primary source of data from which the regional ecosystem mapping of the Wet Tropics bioregion was derived was The Vegetation of the Wet Tropics Bioregion. Based on reports and 1:25 000 data provided by J.P. and D.J. Stanton (1997-2005). Wet Tropics Management Authority, Cairns.

The pre-clearing vegetation communities for Cape York Peninsula, South Western and Central Western Queensland are mapped at a scale of 1:250,000. These data are in the process of being upgraded to a scale of 1:100,000. The remnant and regional ecosystem coverages are currently being developed for these areas.

The survey and mapping of vegetation for the remainder of the State, mainly the Channel Country, Gulf Plains and the Northwest Highlands bioregions is underway. The remnant vegetation cover exists for the areas coloured green on the map below.


Queensland's Vegetation Communities and Regional Ecosystems
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Southeast Queensland showing area mapped at 1:50,000 scale
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Overview of steps involved in vegetation survey and mapping

Aerial photo of vegetation

Aerial photo of vegetation

Products and applications

<em>Melaleuca quinquenervia</em> open forest

Melaleuca quinquenervia open forest

Please contact us by email: Queensland.Herbarium@epa.qld.gov.au
Tel: (07) 3896 9325 fax: (07) 3896 9624

Glossary

Regional ecosystems are vegetation communities in a bioregion that are consistently associated with a particular combination of geology, landform and soil.

Pre-clearing vegetation is defined as the vegetation present before clearing.

Remnant woody vegetation is defined as vegetation that has not been cleared or vegetation that has been cleared but where the dominant canopy has >70% of the height and >50% of the cover relative to the undisturbed height and cover of that stratum and is dominated by species characteristic of the vegetation's undisturbed canopy. For further clarification of the definition and mapping methods of remnant vegetation see Neldner et al. (2005).

Last updated: 31 March 2009

Queensland Herbarium

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