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Thanks to an Australian Orchid Foundation grant, WOW ecologists are conducting orchid monitoring surveys in the Mount Lofty Ranges during the peak flowering season of August, September and October this year. This research project will systematically survey wild orchid populations and their habitat context to gain detailed insights into the drivers of species occurrences, abundance and phenology. We will aim to determine which environmental and habitat condition parameters best predict the presence and status of orchid populations and communities through analysis of spatial and temporal changes in habitat configuration, management regime, vegetation communities and climate. We will also investigate how best to combine new, detailed information obtained through the WOW app and project with historical records of orchids to assess change. This investigation will provide novel information on how broader ecosystem processes are impacting orchids via effects on disturbance levels, ecosystem composition and reproductive success. The results will reveal factors contributing to population decline or reproductive failure in orchids, which threaten their persistence and adaptive capacity in the context of climate change. This information will better inform how we should manage the habitats of orchids in a whole ecosystem context.
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