Environment & Vegitation Study 3rd May 2011

After our tracking of our Koala's which by now we were completing in about 30mns it was time to learn more about the environment that our Koala's lived in and also about the vegetation.

The Koala (Phascolarctos cinereus) is an iconic species that attracts considerable public attention.  Its appeal to international visitors contributes significantly to Australia's Tourism Industry.Conservation of the koala and its habitat is therefore a priority.

A growing additional threat is climate change. Under warming climates mortality rates will potentially increase, as a result of the koalas low tolerance of prolonged heat. Climate change will likely result in a decline of nutritional quality and moisture content of koala food trees. The Koala is a specialist in surviving in a poor energy diet and the koala is sensitive to changes in the food supply. An increase in energy spent finding food may result in less energy available for reproduction and rearing of young with subsequent impacts on the fitness of populations and persistence of the species in some areas. An understanding of how koala's respond to changes in their habitat is critical to the conservation of the species.

At Cape Otway, Koala's occur in high densities, particularly in Manna Gum habitats. Densities of up to 17 koala's per hectare or 23 koala's per hectare of tree cover have been reported for Manna Gum woodland in this area with over 50% Manna Gum either dead or in extremely in poor condition.

Cape Otway provides a unique opportunity to investigate the response of koalas to environmental change, the process involved in koala population regulation, and the over-browsing impacts of koalas on habitats and other fauna. This information is critical in development management strategies (e.g.  revegetation, translocation programs) to conserve this species and its habitats. This research would also allow a further understanding of the ecology of koalas and their resilience to environmental change through comparing the ecology of this southern koala population with that of koalas in Queensland.

The goal of today was to determine tree selection and use by koalas, temporal variation associated with habitat change, describe the habitat that the koalas were using and structure of their habitat.  This would provide the foundation of how the koala goes about using the forest and also allows to track the dynamics of the forest.

For the day we split into 2 teams with a sheet that had random numbers on it eg :

99  100  29 38
89   67  19  78
15   25  49  16

We used the numbers on the sheets to step out the the vegetation and then proceeded to measure out the vegetation (eg 99 that would mean taking 99 steps then stopping).  From where we stood we needed to mark our a quadrant. 
                 
This meant that standing at the centre we needed to draw an imaginary square.  This meant dividing the area into 4 so that we could measure all trees and shrubs in the quadrant closest to the centre point.  The measurement consisted me standing in the centre of the square holding onto a measuring tape and my partner walking to the nearest tree or shrub and measuring the distance, the circumference of the tree or if there was a shrub closest then we needed to measure the shrub and all branches greater than 10 cms on the shrub. The data was collected and recorded on data sheets.  The vegetation included mainly of the following trees and shrubs which were in the area, Manna Gums, Emu Bush, Casurina, Banksia and Bursaria.


Manna Gum



Banksia

Bursaria



Casurina

The data that we collected was then entered into the database so we had some ideas of which was the most common type of tree or shrub.  From our data the Manna Gum was the most common tree and the Emu Shrub was the most common shrub.


Today was a very laborious day as it involved lots of walking through bush where there was no tracks and hence we had to walk through bush and scrub. This was unavoidable as if we were towalk on the tracks this would not give us a true indication of what their environment would be like.

That night after dinner we all talked about what we would do the next day and decided that tomorrow we would head to a place to collect data not far from where we were staying. We were all very exhausted as this work was very repetitive with no variation.

                                        

                                                                                                   

Day of Lesuire 2 May 2011

Our day off has arrived yeah !!!!! Rest and Relaxation.  The day started off with a sleep-in which was just what the body needed. Today we were going to spoil ourselves with our breakfast of bacon and eggs.  It was so good to sit down and have our breakfast leisurely no rush all the time in the world.  The bacon and eggs were great comfort food, this did mean that today we would need to walk the breakfast off.

As a group we discussed what we would like to do on our day off and we decided that we would like to take a walk to the beach and then to the lighthouse.  The day was cool and the sun was peeking through which was great.  Today we did not need to wear our wet weather gear or carry a heavy backpack.

We headed off on our walk to the beach which was approx. 2.4 kms and the walk was quiet a good one not too many hills or uneven terrain. As we walked we talked and looked to see what type of birds we could see. 

One of the many parrots in the area

As we got closer to the beach we could hear the roar of the waves breaking.  All at once everyone's phones beeped yes we finally had reception on our mobiles and you guessed it we all stopped to call our loved ones it was so great to be able to speak to family and friends.

When we arrived at the beach which was pristine the waves were massive and the noise of them breaking was very loud. From where we stood we could see Rainbow Falls.  A cascade nearby that derives its name from the marvellous effect created by the afternoon sun as it sparkles on spring water spilling from a tall cliff.

               

Great Southern Ocean

Cape Otway is situated at the southern tip of Victoria's western coast, where the Southern Ocean meets Bass Strait. Much of the district around Cape Otway is included in the Great Otway National Park, which features rain forest, waterfalls and streams, heathland and woodlands, and a spectacular rugged coastline.

After a rest and some quiet time we decided to extend our walk to the light station.  The walk would be about 7 kms and seeing the weather was fine we decided to make our way.  The walk was along the coastline and was spectacular  At times we were so high and the drop was very rugged.

At last we saw the top of the the light station and we knew that we had arrived.  There is a lot of history about this light station and many wrecks up to 400 in this area alone. The 84 Km gap between Cape Wickham on King Island and Cape Otway is known as the 'Eye of the Needle'. It is the western entrance to Bass Strain.  Sea captains would hug the Victorian coast to avoid being driven into King Island in bad weather, resulting in many wrecks.

                   

THE western coast of Victoria has claimed more shipwrecks than any other stretch of Australian coastline. The treacherous seas, reefs and hostile weather conditions saw hundreds of lives lost. The sea floor is littered with what remains of the wrecks whose cargoes included migrants, hopeful gold miners and convicts. The ships foundered due to human error, bad weather, lack of local knowledge and as shipping lines vied for the lucrative migrant market - lives were undoubtedly lost due to companies taking cost cutting.

CAPE Otway Lightstation's first keepers and their wives had to be dedicated, hard-working and incredibly resourceful people to cope with the demands of an arduous and isolated lifestyle with supplies delivered just twice a year - by boat. They kept the light lit, rescued and fed shipwreck victims and raised their families in between maintaining the Beacon of Hope for the thousands of ships which traversed Bass Strait.

 

Tombstone of Infant Henry Collingwood

Near the Lightstation there is a cemetery that we visited on our walk to the lighstation.  Having stopped to have a look made me realise just how treacherous the waters were and how vulnerable ships were against this stretch of water. The waters did not discriminate they took people of all ages and the children were the most at risk.  The graves told the stories.


After spending a while looking and reading some of graves we decided to head back to our camp site at Bimbi Park.                         

Before heading off we decided to have a picture taken of us together.

The trek back was harder with some hills to climb. I could not wait to get back to our cabin for a rest and a tea.  This day I estimated that we walked approx. 10 kms not bad for a day off.  That night we a great butterscotch pudding. After dinner we sat back and watched the Logies and the ladies on the catwalk with commentary on the gowns. Next day we would be looking at Environment & Vegetation Study.

Tracking Koala's & Tree Measuring 1st May 2011

After some great weather since our arrival it looked like rain today which meant that we needed to wear our wet weather gear.  This mean waterproof jacket, waterproof pants and hat.  I can say that once dressed I looked so hip that I would've made a fashion statement on the catwalks of Paris along with my cap which was adorned with a shower cap, this was to keep the rain off my glasses, pretty ingenious !!!

We set out again with all our equipment, (radio tracking equipment, measuring taps, data sheets, clinometer's, metal tree tags and nails).  Once we arrived at our makeshift base camp we split up into 2 groups to commence the tracking of the koala's which we previously radio collared the day before. 

Our group set out with Alistair who would provide us with on the spot training on how to track the Koala's.  Our team had an antenna, data sheets and GPS. Firstly I needed  the frequency to enable me to find the koala's, this was done by tuning the frequency to the radio collar of the koala that we wanted to locate. For example - the previous day we put a collar on a Koala which had a number of 380, this is number that I tuned the GPS to locate the koala.  Once this was done I needed to hold the antenna up high and listen for the signal. This meant that I needed to complete a circle and listen from where the beep was the loudest, I would follow the signal until it was very loud which meant that I had located the koala.  Sometimes there was more that 1 koala in the same tree which meant that I needed to use binoculars to see if one of the koala's located had a collar and if so, I knew that I had identified the right koala.  There is a definite skill in using the GPS to track Koala's especially if there is a group of 3 or 4 koala's in the same location you really need to use your listening skills, then your observation skills to ensure that the correct koala is located as the data collected needs to be correct when being collated.

Once the correct koala had been identified in the tree data sheets needed to be completed. Data collected was, which tree the koala was located in, how many other koala's in the immediate area less than 20 metres away, what was the koala doing ie sleeping, rest awake, active, eating).   The reason why this data needed to be collected was to get an understanding if the koala's were moving if so, how far and to which tree, how long they stayed in the same tree, and what activity they were doing at the time. 



Sleeping



Sleeping

Rest Alert

This data gathered over a period of time  would show the range of how often the koala would move, how often the koala would move, the size class of the trees the koala's were using, the activities the koala was doing and when do they do these activities. All this data would then be entered into a database which would allow us to understand koala behaviour in more detail and allow this data to be compared with other koala data collected in Queensland.

GPS Frequency Tracker

Radio Antenna

                                             

The tracking would need to be completed twice daily morning and afternoon for the rest our expedition using the same procedure and ensuring that all information was collected on our data sheets.

By lunchtime it was raining, one good thing was that it kept the mosquito's away yeah!!!! The downside we were wet. Oh well the work must go on. It was time to commence the measuring of the tees.  This sounds fairly easy however, you soon learn that sometimes the tree is so large that hugging it can be quite difficult.
Measurements included tree species and composition, tree density and tree size (DBH - Diameter Breast Height, height, canopy area).  Canopy condition of each tree would be assessed through photo points and visual assessment of canopy cover.

We began to place a metal tag on each tree that had been previously been identified where our radio collared koala's had been first located on the first day of our field work.  The tree number was marked on the metal tag and tag hammered into the tree to allow for easy tree identification.

The measuring of the tree involved measuring the diameter of the tree base at breast height including how many arms to the tree.  The height of the tree was measured by a clinometer.




Clinometer

 

We also needed to measure the canopy of the tree. This required the tree to be divided into 4 quadrants, north, south, east and west. It was interesting to note that the condition of the trees was quiet poor.  By the end of the day we had measured 35 trees, by the end of the expedition we had logged up to 48 trees.

The mapping of the trees will allow for other groups who come to this area to know and identify the trees and capture other data.

Manna Gum - Sparse Canopy

 

In addition on this day we also deployed motion-triggered remote camera's.  The information once downloaded allowed for viewing of images that would also capture small mammal diversity in addition to the movement of koala's.

The rain did not stop during the day and we were all wet and cold.  We collected all our gear and made our way back to our cabin. Exhausted from a full day of work we rested, cooked tea and watched TV.  We were so excited the next day would be our day off. Yes we had a day to ourselves, we could do whatever we wanted and first on the agenda would mean that we all would sleep in and take our time with breakfast.

                                   

The Tagging & The Catching - 29th to 30th April 2011

Woke up this morning to the clanking of pots and pans in the Kitchen looks like Deidre was up early again getting ready for her walk. My mind wondered about what today would be like in regards to how we would go about catching the Koala's.  This I thought would be very challenging given how high some of them were up in trees.

With breakfast done and out of the way we made our way to the field where we would spend the day catching, tagging and fitting Koala's with radio collars along with accelerometers. The radio collars would allow us to track koala's movements and observe koala's. Data downloaded from accelerometers will provide a measure of energy expenditure by individuals of koala's and fitted for up to 7 days. These Koala's will be monitored at regular intervals during the year to determine seasonal movements and home range.

After our team briefing on koala capture (flagging the koala down the tree) and handling techniques we were given hands-on training in restraining the koala for measurement and/or device fitting.  We headed off to find our first subject.  Once located we needed to ensure that we all were wearing hard hats as branches could break and fall when catching the koala.  There are 2 types of catches :

Ground Catch - this is a fairly easy catch which can be done from the ground

Tree Catch - this is more labour intensive as it requires climbing a tree with a winch and using flags in the tree to bring the koala down

We located our first Koala this would be a Ground Catch.  Desley and Alistair were the main catchers due to their experience and as volunteers we assisted as directions were given to us during the capture. The koala was approx 7 metres up the tree and resting on a branch.  Desley & Alistair extended the flag poles (approx 6 metres) with plastic flags on the end.  The technique was to get the flags as close as possible to the koala's face and shake the flags in front of their face.  The noise and along with flags was enough to scare the koala and the koala would commence backing down the tree backwards. This technique was repeated many times until the koala was at a level that could be handled.

                                     

                                                                  

Once caught the koala was gently put into a sack and carried back to our camp where we would weigh the koala whilst in the sack (the koala moved very little whilst being carried and we needed to ensure that the koala's back was against our back so that if the koala moved during transportation we would not be scratched). The weight of the sack was taken into consideration to ensure that we had a correct reading of the koala's weight.

Weighing the Koala

The next step was the most challenging restraining the koala on the ground. Whilst the koala was in the sack we placed the sack and the koala on the ground (with their limbs on the ground), with one hand we held onto their neck whilst we knelt down on the ground holding the koala between our knees and the other hand around their neck. This gave me the ability to restrain the koala's body and at the same time allowed me manoeuvre the koala.  It was important not to sit on the Koala.  Once restrained I would open up the sack and bring the koalas head out with one hand out whilst holding the sack,  with the other hand around the koalas neck (similar to a bib), this allowed Desley/Alistair to complete some tasks such as head measuring, looking at the teeth to determine the koalas age and feel the koala's body to ascertain the condition of the koala (koalas have a great deal of muscle with very little fat). The last action was to place a radio collar around the koalas neck. This meant that a recorded number along with other details was programmed to the radio collar which corresponded with the koala that had been caught for future tracking. These radio collars are battery operated and can last up to a period of 3 years.



Checking Koala's Teeth



 

Measuring Koala's Head

Once these actions were completed the koalas head was covered up with the sack.  It was then necessary to take the koala back to the tree where the koala was captured as koalas (Phascolarctos cinereus) are territorial.  To keep the stress levels of the koala at a minimum the maximum time that we could restrain the koala was 45mns ( I am pleased to say that our experiences only reflect a maximum time limit of 30mns.

Koloa with Radio Collar

During this process data sheets were completed making note of the tree and its height that the koala was captured in, the weight and head length of the koala, age of the koala, overall condition of the koala, the type of catch and also how long the catch took . It is interesting to note that the Victorian Koala is much larger than their relatives in Queensland.  The heaviest Koala we caught was approx 14kgs, in Queensland the heaviest koala would be 9kgs.

The catching of the koalas up the tree required great skill and patience.  Desley would gear up with her safety harness and with a rope would winch herself up the tree to a stable branch which great required strength and was labour intensive.  Once Desley had stabilised herself she would proceed with the flagging poles and commenced the ardours activity of flagging the koala's down the tree.  At times the koala would become quiet angry with the flagging poles and would try to eat the flags or would lash out at the flag pole.  Sometimes the koala would try to go further up the tree which required a all hands on deck approach to ensure that the koala would come down instead of climbing further up the tree. Once the koala was caught the same procedure as above would apply.

In the event where we attempted to catch a koala that was injured we would not proceed with the capture we would let the koala go. In addition if a koala weighed less than 6kgs we would let the koala go as they were considered too small to put a radio collar around their neck. The reason for this was that the koala could lose the collar if the collar was too loose or alternatively as the koala grew the collar could end up being too tight and could result in the koala being chocked.  When catching koalas some of us had a koala shower - you might wander what this was see if you can guess !!!!!

We each took turns of restraining the koala's. When it was my turn to restrain the koala I was very nervous.  My koala was very strong as he weighted approx. 13kgs and was quite big.  I managed to restrain the koala and had a feel of his fur.  The fur was very, very soft and surprising he was very quiet when restrained. I got to name my Koala and I named him Nelson.  On these 2 days we caught and collared 10 koala's a great number to work with.



Nelson & Me

 The day ended with us talking about koala's who now all had names and had an identity. We ate heartily casserole and butterscotch pudding. Nothing like some comfort food after being out all day.









Koala Tracking - 28 April 2011

Today our first day of working in the field alongside Desley and Alistair.  We were up early to have breakfast and pack our lunches and snacks given that we would not be returning our accommodation until much later in the afternoon. The sun was out and it was going to be a good day.

We rendevouzed at Desley's cabin and before making our way to the woodlands we were given training by Alistair on how to use some of equipment in particular, a 2 way radio in case we became separated from the team or if there was an emergency.  In addition we learnt how to use a GPS - Global Positioning Satellite - as we would use the GPS to mark trees of where Koala's were located and give the Koala a number for identification purposes.  The GPS would also allow us to input where our accommodation at Bimbi park was in the case that we became lost. With all training under our belt our team set off the the days work.

We headed out to where our field work was to be based at which was approx. a 5 minute walk from our accommodation.  Once we had reached our site we made a base camp where we would leave our equipment, backpacks etc whilst we commenced our tracking. The area we were to work in was comprised of Manna Gum Trees and our ojective today was to cover approx. 1 hectare of ground looking for Koala's. This required to stop at each manna gum looking for Koala's.

We separated into 3 groups and once we located a Koala in a tree we tied a piece of blue tape around the tree, we wrote the number of each of the koala's we had located on the blue tape. We used the GPS to Register/Mark the Koala's satellite position ie K1 Sat No. K1 and the satellite location of the tree that the Koala was in - transalation Koala number 1 satellite positon number 1 followed by satellite location.





















Whilst tracking for the koala's we noticed that some of the Koala's had previously been ear tagged.  A coloured tag in the right ear would identify a female Koala and a coloured tag in the left ear would identify a male Koala. At times depending on where the Koala was in the tree it was difficult to see whether or not the Koala had an ear tag so we would use our binoculars to validate this.

We stopped for morning tea and lunch and we were feeling quite tired from all the walking that was required in an environment that was thickly vegetated (esspecially bracken) made walking difficult.  We needed to make sure that we were kept hydrated which meant carrying water with us at all times.

Some of the insects that we were exposed to were the common bush tick, stinging ants, centipedes, bees, wasps and mosquitoes. Off all the insects the mosquitoes were the worst of all. They were everywhere and we needed a very had a strong repellent to keep them away.  They saw us as fresh meat and at every opportunity they would try to bite us, I have never seen so many at any one time in one place.

By the end of the day we had located and logged approx. 18 Koala's and we called it a day. We went back to our cabin for some rest and relaxation after a long a exhausting day.  We cooked Taco's for dinner which was great and we all listened with enthusiasm the discussion with both Desley and Alistair about what the following day would involve and what equipment we would require. The next day was going to be really hands on and would be very challenging.

The Arrival - 27 April 2011

The day has arrived and I am off on my expedition after saying all my goodbye's to my family. I made my way to Southern Cross Station where I was meeting a fellow Nab Earthwatch Volunteer for our journey to Bimbi Park at Apollo Bay. The train ride to Geelong was great however, I struggled with the bus trip. Never having travelled to Apollo Bay I was not aware of the long and winding road that never seemed to end.  From what I saw the drive along the coast is breathtaking and well worth a visit down to this beautiful part of Victoria.



Upon our arrival at Apollo Bay we were met by Dr Desley Whisson (Deakin University),Dr Alistair Melzer (Central Queensland University) & Sara from Earthwatch. After a quick bite, we were on our way.

We arrived at Bimbi Park and made our way to our accommodation where we meet another volunteer who would be part of our team.  Once unpacked we commenced exploring our new environment. 



                 

Our location is a holiday park. The park is conveniently located within the study area.  It is sheltered amongst tall manna gum trees, far away from the wearing noise of towns and traffic and offers great opportunities for spotting wildlife such as Koala's, possums, kangaroos, echidnas, approx. 70 species of birds and many more other species.


On this day we spotted 6 koala's just outside our cabin little did we know how many more we would be spotting during our stay.  Dr Desley Whisson & Dr Alistair Melzer provided us information regarding Koala's ie how to identify the sex of a koala. The male has a brown stripe on its sternum where a female has white on its tummy, has a rounder and less buffy face.Koala's commence their breeding season in September. Koala's preferred tree is the Manna Gum and Koala's require to eat approx. 1kg of gum leaves per day. Most of the Manna Gum woodland in this area is either 50% dead or in extremely poor condition (Orlowski 2010).

 

We decided to set up a roster for the 10 days for preparation of Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner and the first evening we sat down to Stir Fry Veggies with Noodles and Chocolate brownies which was great. After dinner we went around the table and spent some time getting to know each other given that we were to work and live very closely together for the next 10 days. In addition both Desley and Alex spent some time talking about safety and navigation in relation to our work and environment that we would be working in.

 

The next day would commence our work of tracking Koala's. What would this involve it all sounded very interesting.