There are data from 30 quadrats in the TGB Osborn Vegetation Reserve, varying in size and duration of measurements, several of which are shown in the Reserve map. They range in size from large quadrats (100 x100 m), one 60 x80m, to intermediate (10 x10 m) and small (1x1m and irregular). Most quadrats are inside the reserve but some lie adjacent outside the fenced area. The data from the quadrats is presented in three different files:
(a) the abundance (numbers) of individuals of species within the quadrat,
(b) a selection of species measured within the quadrat (subplot), and
(c) individual plant locations within the quadrats.
This is version 2.1 of the TGB Osborn Vegetation Quadrat data release and supersedes any previous versions.
Change log for the metadata for the collection:
- V3, 2026-03-26; Specht and Arun Singh Ramesh; Update to accompany V2.1 data files. Referenced geolocation file (https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.19177115). Changed the name 'subplot' to 'subquadrat' as an identifier. Removed data quality columns as no evidence to support them.
- V2.1, 2026-02-06; Specht, Miranda Fittock and Arun Singh Ramesh; Ensured dates recorded were in ISO format YYYY-MM-DD. Updated geolocations, including two new columns, with NA used throughout for missing information. Expanded metadata text to explain better. Updated species list. Checked field comments for accuracy. Added data quality columns.
- V2, 2025-0701; Alison Specht; Digitised existing files, splitting them into synchronous categories, removing duplications and correcting errors to comply with FAIR standards. Aligned vocabularies with the TERN vocabularies, updated species names and created comprehensive metadata. Locations verified with David Ladd.
- V1, 2008-2014; Russell Sinclair; digitised field data sheets and computer records delivered to the AEKOS TERN portal. Added required V1 metadata in the AEKOS portal.
Credit
We at TERN acknowledge the Traditional Owners and Custodians throughout Australia, New Zealand and all nations. We honour their profound connections to land, water, biodiversity and culture and pay our respects to their Elders past, present and emerging. Acknowledgement is due to all the students, staff and researchers who have collected data at the site since its establishment, to those who have entered the data, and to the support of funders and interested parties, including the Adelaide University. Without the vision, tenacity, and diligence of many past researchers, these unique data could not have been made openly available.
Purpose
In the mid-1920's Professor Theodore George Bentley Osborn, Professor of Botany in the University of Adelaide, put forward strong scientific arguments concerning the lack of knowledge of the ecology of arid zone vegetation, and the effect of grazing on it. In 1925, a parcel of land of around 390 ha was identified in Koonamore Station in South Australia and fenced to exclude rabbits and other stock, and Mr Wilcox, one of the directors, had a three-roomed house erected to serve as a field laboratory. The area was originally referred to as the Arid Region Flora Reserve but later was named the TGB Osborn Vegetation Reserve after its founder. For simplicity it is commonly referred to as the Koonamore Vegetation Reserve. There have been some unwanted animal incursions over the years, but these have been rare. In 1931, for example, rabbits were able to enter due to fence damage. Kangaroos and emus are not fully excluded. As is clear from the objectives stated by TGB Osborn, the reserve was to provide the basis for systematic measurements of the now-protected vegetation. Osborn and his team (including Prof. J.G. Wood and Mr Terry Paltridge) set up a series of quadrats (square plots) and photopoints within the reserve. A series of transects was later added. All of the foregoing were permanently marked, and observations on species occurrence (presence and abundance) and physical measurements of the plants were made repeatedly, but at varying intervals.
