1. TREND Citizen Science
Australian Transect Network
Stefan Caddy-Retalic
Australian Transect Network Coordinator
stefan.caddy-retalic@adelaide.edu.au : 0418 812 232

2. TREND
Transects for Environmental Monitoring and Decision Making
• Understanding ongoing change using
– Historical information
– Space as a surrogate for predicted temporal change
– Monitoring sites to set baselines and measure change
• Measuring
– Shifts in species composition (change in production practices,
invasives, die-back and range expansions)
– Change in phenology (harvests at different times of year,
biota spawning, mating and flowering shifts)
• Multiple themes

3. TREND Transects

4. TREND Citizen Science
• Terrestrial Ecosystems Theme
– Lower Mt Lofty to upper Flinders
Ranges
– Temperature and rainfall gradient
– Coincidental with the Heysen Trail
• Probably the most heavily walked trail in
the state
• Strong community interest from friends
and conservation groups, scouts, walkers,
etc
– Several sensitive, conspicuous species
and groups are common along much
of length
– Mobile phone coverage

5. Mobile apps
Existing products – Project Noah
• Collects presence data for any species
• Theoretically global coverage
• Relies on public “expert” verification
• Researchers can establish local
“missions” to crowdsource data for
specific projects
• Due to lack of focus, the majority of data
seems unlikely to be ecologically useful
• Users earn badges for
submission or participating
in specific projects

6. Mobile apps
Existing products – eBird
• Collects presence/absence bird data
• Focus on web interface (though app
clients have been launched)
• Exploits the obsession tenacity of bird
watchers
• Highly collaborative (links with other
groups and databases)
• Data readily viewable and extractable
• ~1% funding from Cornell University,
remainder of funds sourced from
donations and external fundraising.

7. Mobile apps
Planning for TREND
• Collect species presence data to
complement Terrestrial Ecosystems theme
• Change in species occurrence and
phenology over time allows us to map
ecosystem change
• Need to balance scientific interest with
realism by selecting species that are:
– sensitive to change
– reliably photographable
– identifiable (preferably charismatic)
– of interest to managers as well as scientists
• Exploit smart phone
hardware and software

8. TREND Mobile app
Recording Species

9. TREND Mobile app
Photo Points
• App guides user to collect stereo pairs of images from
established photo points
• Using image recognition technology developed by ACVT for
AusPlots, stereo pairs can be combined in to a 3D landscape
model
• Allows additional information on vegetation structure to be
extracted from traditional photographs

10. TREND Mobile app
Photo Points

11. TREND Mobile app
Photo Points
• Agreement with SA DEWNR to install photo points in SA parks
– Will form a part of DEWNR’s monitoring program
– Increases community participation in park management, particularly
in relation to contentious issues such as prescribed burns
– First two photo points to be installed next month (Mt Lofty summit)
• Photo points to be installed to record impacts such as:
– Prescribed burns
– Weed invasion
– Phytophtera die back
– Ecological succession
– Revegetation

12. TREND Citizen Science
Web Interface
• All sightings
available online
• Database query
and export
functionality
currently being
developed