Riparian vegetation in an agricultural landscape: assessment and analysis of condition and change

Abstract

Vegetation assessment is done using a wide range approaches depending on the assessment aims and constraints. Two approaches to sampling with vastly different targets, designs, and costs, are snapshot (single time period) or longitudinal (multiple time period) studies. Each approach has a range of strengths and weaknesses for vegetation assessment that allow interrogation of different research objectives. The collection and analysis of data within each sampling approach contains an array of challenges for any given study. The research reported here uses a case study of riparian vegetation in northern Victoria, Australia to explore the use of snapshot and longitudinal surveys for understandin..