The value of Photo Point Monitoring

This post is about the importance of establishing photopoints to monitor physical changes at a given location.

At 16:6 we use photopoint monitoring to gain an understanding of how effective our management actions  have been, or whether factors such as climate, human incursions and abundant species are impacting the lands environmental health.

As a part of our ongoing 2024-2025 Native Vegetation Grant funding we have set up 62 photopoints. Please see this link for how we establsih our photopoints eplb_photopoint_monitoring_factsheet.pdf (environment.sa.gov.au)

Image 1 - the process of establishing a Photopoint

Image 2 - a screen cut from an Excell where Photopoints are recorded to link seasonal images

The current sites primarily monitor: target weed species, some key threatened species  ( Mallee Fowl Mounds and vulnerable plant species) Fence lines where there has been historical vehicle incursion and areas where there has been a change in land use (ie rehabilitation and exclusion zones)

Image 4 Is standing at Point A ( numbered Photopoint) Looking towards the second post. The images are captured using a program called Context Cam where the GPS meta data, date and time are captured.

Photopoints are generally used for the long term monitoring of vegetation changes at a set point. Over 75% of all of our current photopoints have been established to monitor vegetation, however we have also established some to gain a greater understanding of fauna impacts such as the movement of warren systems, or to develop records associated with fauna trails.

Below is three screen shots which provide an overview of Photopoints for Vegetation Monitoring from the Native Vegetation Council ( DEW Site)