Supersite field survey protocol development

Editor's Notes

• #2: Assume 15 minute talk
• #3: The Australian SuperSite Network (SuperSites) aims to improve our understanding of ecosystem response to environmental change through long-term intensive ecosystem monitoring. Network approach should allow challenging questions to be answered at a continental and eventually a global scale SuperSites aim to gain a process based understanding of the different biomes by a combination of intensive field measures on flora and fauna and physical instrumentation to monitor biophysical elements.  A field station includes some sort of building so that researchers have a base from where than can carry out there work.Ranges from minimal to sophisticated with lots of accommodation and labs. The location of a field station is called a node. Some SuperSites have more than 1 node. The basic biome type is the same but there are contrasts eg. tropical rainforest lowland vs upland. 3 of the SuperSites currently have 2 nodes.
• #4: Each SuperSite has a range of local research questions addressed by the PIs and institutions managing the site.
• #5: Qld state government funding allowed development of two demonstrator sites.
• #6: SuperSites Network boot strapped into being in 2011 with TERN Funding, using a collaborative, co-contribution model. Necessary to start with sites with significant research activity in place, located in a significant Australian biome and suitable terrain to locate a flux tower. Protocol working groups were formed to advise on suitable monitoring protocols to address the science questions
• #7: In 2012 an additional 5 volunteer SuperSites came on board and aligned as much as possible Protocols were further developed with biome specific protocols (rangelands vs forest) for vegetation structure, LAI, biomass Alignment with intl. monitoring has been a major consideration while we have been developing our systems There has been increasing use of SuperSites for remote sensing calibration and validation
• #8: SuperSites Network boot strapped into being in 2011 with TERN Funding, using a collaborative, co-contribution model. Necessary to start with sites with significant research activity in place, located in a significant Australian biome and suitable terrain to locate a flux tower.
• #9: To answer the network-wide science questions will take a TERN-wide collaborative approach. The key facilities that interact with SuperSites infrastructure (including data) are OzFlux (eddy covariance towers), AusCover (TERN's remote sensing facility) and eMast (TERN's modelling and scaling infrastructure). Unfortunately eMast is currently mostly mothballed due to a lack of funding.
• #10: OzCover eddy covariance flux intrumentation measure CO2, radiation, soil temp, soil moisture AusCover carries out LiDAR and Hyperspectral aerial surveys at SuperSites with extensive ground calibration and validation and has started working with Terrestrial Laser Scanning at the SuperSites to assess vegetation structure and biomass. Phenocams and other equipment have been situated on the flux towers.Currently 11 of the 13 SuperSites nodes have been flown. The other 2 are on a to-do list.
• #15: Current monitoring includes Phenocams (inherited from AusCover), LAI, Acoustic Monitoring, Vegetation direct measure of stems and bioomass (every 5 years) and Photopoints (image of the core 1 ha from each corner and centre). When adequate funding resumes we will continue with bird surveys, ant surveys, Bore logging, vegetation species lists in the core 1 ha, recruitment and coarse woody debris. Monitoring protocols that will be considered in future include Cosmos soil moisture sensors, camera traps, new towers sensors. We will also like to look at expanding spatial extent of the monitoring
• #16: Data is available through the SuperSites website with metadata
• #17: Searches bring up a list of datasets. These are tagged with a green QC button to indicate the PI has reviewed the entry. The .csv flat files and metadata are available from here. Metadata is harvested to the TERN Data Discovery Portal and ANDS. Metadata is also harvested into AEKOS and then DataOne
• #20: The TERN SuperSites aim is to collect high intensity long-term ecosystem monitoring data that is compatible with other networks to allow continental, inter-continental and global analyses.
• #21: Major issue at the moment is getting all the data in smoothly in the right format. Template driven data entry, Cloudstor data sharing. Future issues - improving QA QC procedures. Development of scripts to check data on ingest, QC procedures in the field with enhanced funding. Assess representativeness of pots to surroundings, look at repetition/expansion of surveys. As a collaborative network managed by researchers on a fractional appointment the SuperSite monitoring adds value by improving collaboration potential, but it also takes time away from working on research publications for career advancement / survival. Having dataset publication and citations included as a metric of performance would improve the capture rate of non-TERN funded data sets generated at the SuperSites as well as encouraging co-contribution
• #24: Integrated with Ausplots Rangelands and Forests and Auscover LAI protocols