In South Australia, Fungimap has secured grant funding to run a 3 year pilot project called “Fungi for Function: bushland health indicators“ (April 2024 – February 2027).
This is a fungi surveying project which will be developed with citizen scientists at 10 sites through the Mount Lofty Ranges, with a focus on target species within the four fungi functional groups (lichens, recyclers, mycorrhizae, and parasites). The surveying seeks to answer key research questions around whether the richness and ratio of species in these functional groups can be used as indicators of bushland ecosystem health and resilience, and whether systematic citizen science is a robust and repeatable way to collect data on these indicators over time. Each of these 10 sites is a paired site, with both unmodified, high quality bushland adjacent to more degraded, modified bushland to enable comparison. The first year will be a trial of 3 sites, each surveyed twice, building up to all 10 sites surveyed twice in subsequent years. The sites are a mixture of national park sites, Bush for Life sites (managed by Trees for Life volunteers), and private landholder sites. They are across the rainfall gradient of the Mount Lofty Ranges. The survey methodology will also be trialled at sites in the lower rainfall area of the Murraylands and Riverland Landscape Board, and educational resources developed to roll out the survey methodology in schools via the education team at the Murraylands and Riverland Landscape Board.
This project is being delivered in collaboration with many partner organisations, who are providing substantial in-kind or financial support for the project, including the Botanic Gardens and State Herbarium, Murraylands and Riverland Landscape Board, National Parks and Wildlife Service, Trees for Life, Hills Biodiversity, Kersbrook Landcare, Second Nature Conservancy, CSIRO (ALA), University of Adelaide, and the Willunga Environment Centre.
Click here to subscribe to our project mailing list for updates and survey dates.
Click here to read Project Update #1 (July 2024)
Click here to read Project Update #2 (October 2024)
For all other enquiries please contact the Project Coordinator, Sophie Green, at fungiforfunction@gmail.com.
Follow the project on instagram @fungiforfunction
