FEATURE
It ' s the season to be involved with the VEGMAP Project Anisha Dayaram
Current Address : South African National Biodiversity Institute ( SANBI ), Pretoria E-mail Address : a . dayaram @ sanbi . org . za
O ver 15 years ago the VEGMAP Project was established at the South
African National Biodiversity Institute ( SANBI ) through the collaborative effort of over 400 scientists who produced several national maps and classification of the diversity of vegetation across the country . The map has proven useful for research and analyses used in biodiversity planning and management . Today , advances in mapping tools and our knowledge of the landscape allow us to improve parts of the map that needed refinement and the map has been through three iterations since 2006 , with the last version released in 2019 and can be downloaded from the Biodiversity GIS website
here . The website is also home to digital versions of previous versions of the map , a digital version of all chapters of the publication Mucina and Rutherford ( 2006 ), guidelines to citing VEGMAP Project resources , and guidance for submitting proposed changes to the map . Users of the national vegetation map are encouraged to help refine the map and classification by sharing new data or raising their concerns through an online questionnaire or by contacting the curators via vegmap @ sanbi . org . za . The next version of the map is currently under development and will be uploaded on the BGIS website as well .
Since the production of the first map , several related tools have been developed and a few exciting ones are on the way to make the map more accessible to users . In 2018 we created the VEG- MAPhoto ( s afr ) project on the citizen science platform iNaturalist to collect landscape photos of each vegetation type listed in the classification system , eventually building a visual catalogue of all the communities existing in each of these vegetation types . We are always looking for contributions so when you are on holiday this December and travelling locally , take a moment to assist us by contributing a photo or two of the landscape you are passing through by using the iNaturalist app on your phone or by uploading it later . Instructions for the kind of photos that are best suited to the project can be found on the home page .
here . The descriptive data with the most votes are currently being shortlisted and will be included as a table that can be linked to the spatial map for further analyses .
VEGMAP Project resources such as the national vegetation map and the photo catalogue on iNaturalist is a collaborative effort that is curated by a small team at SANBI but driven by your efforts and contributions . The wide applications of this resource in local , provincial and national research , planning and management mean that even the smallest contributions have a significant impact . We look forward to interacting with you on our many platforms so that we can map the path to sustainable ecosystems together .
Figure 1 : The National Vegetation Map captures the diversity of vegetation across South Africa and is updated through iterative versions .
Figure 2 : With the VEGMAPhoto project on iNaturalist , we hope to create a photographic catalogue of all examples of communities within a vegetation type .
15 Grassroots Vol 20 No 4 December 2020