ACT and Southern Tablelands Weed Spotter

The Atlas of Living Australia (ALA) ACT and Southern Tablelands Weedspotter web portal and mobile phone weed mapping application (weed mapping app)

WHAT IS IT?
The web portal and associated weed mapping application allows individuals, industry, government and community groups to:

Electronically map weed infestations in the field, including:
What the weed species was,
Where it was seen,
When it was seen,
How many plants were seen, and
How dense the infestation was
Record weed control activities, including:
What type of control,
When it was controlled,
Which species were targeted, and
How effective the control effort was
Store that information on the Weedspotter web portal,
View, manage, review and analyse this information and generate maps and reports on this information to help in future weed management planning.

WHY DO WE NEED IT?

If you are passionate about controlling weeds in our region, you know how to identify and/or control weeds and you want to be part of the solution - to protect farm lands and nature conservation areas from weeds - then register and become involved.

The Weedspotter web portal and weed mapping app helps us to collaborate more and be more effective in controlling weeds in our region, by allowing all users to:

provide an early warning of new and emerging weeds coming into our region
track changes in weed occurrence over time and at different sites;
track weed control effort - where it has occurred, what weeds have been targeted and how effective this work has been;

By understanding what is happening to weeds in our region - individuals (such as farmers), groups (such as Landcare and ParkCare groups) and government can:

prevent new and emerging weeds from becoming a problem.
prioritise weed control effort in their area of interest, and

Identifying and controlling new and emerging weeds is particularly important in a changing climate, as weeds that previously could not survive in our climate, are starting to appear in our region and are at risk of becoming invasive and becoming the next problem weed.

WHAT IS ON THE WEBSITE AND APP?
Weed species of interest

This section includes:

Weed species of interest to the 10 local government areas and the ACT government. These are lists of weeds that NSW local government areas (LGAs) and the ACT government have identified as weeds that could become a problem, are starting to become a problem or are already widespread in our region (the weeds of interest vary across the different LGAs and in the ACT). The ACT and NSW LGAs are particularly interested in new and emerging weeds that are at risk of becoming invasive and becoming the next problem weed
Species profiles - each species listed in the weeds of interest will include detailed information and photos to assist users to identify weed species in the field (using the app) or when they are on the website.
Identification Tool - a Weed Identification Tool that assists all users to identify those hard to pick weeds (this will include look-alikes that are not weeds including native look-alike plants) in the field (using the app) or on the website.

Mapping - How to contribute
There are three mapping tools on the website and available through the app. Each of these mapping tools allows users to photograph weeds of interest, weed infestations of interest or weed control effort and lodge them on the portal. This will assist in confirming weed identification and also tracking change over time.

A general weed mapping tool - which allows users to digitally record in the field or through the portal, a single weed species at a single site.
A more advanced weed mapping tool - which allows users to digitally record (field based and directly into the website portal) a weed infestation - including multiples species, the infestation area and the infestation density at one site.
A tool for recording weed treatment/management information at a particular site.

To use the mapping tools - register for the site.

Weed sightings to date
This area of the website allows users to look at what they have mapped, what else has been mapped in the region - by location, species, date and type of record (single species, multi-species of weed control effort); analyse this data, develop a report and maps and print these documents. This also provides a link to the broader Atlas of Living Australia website and all the biodiversity data that can be accessed through the ALA website.

HOW DO I GET HOLD OF THE MOBILE PHONE APP?
The Atlas of Living Australia (ALA) ACT and Southern Tablelands Weedspotter mobile phone applications are available in IPhone and Android Smart phones from the Apple iTunes Store or from Google Play.

澳大利亚生物多样性地图集（Atlas of Living Australia, ALA）旗下ACT与南部台地Weedspotter杂草监测门户网站及手机杂草测绘应用（weed mapping app，以下简称杂草测绘应用）。

一、系统功能
本门户网站与配套杂草测绘应用可为个人、行业机构、政府部门与社区团体提供以下支持：
1. 以电子方式野外标记杂草入侵点位，涵盖以下信息：
- 杂草物种信息
- 发现地点
- 发现时间
- 所见植株数量
- 入侵密度等级
2. 记录杂草防治作业活动，涵盖以下信息：
- 防治措施类型
- 防治实施时间
- 目标杂草物种
- 防治工作成效
3. 将上述信息存储至Weedspotter杂草监测门户网站
4. 对该类信息进行查看、管理、审核与分析，并生成相关地图与报告，以辅助后续杂草治理规划工作。

二、应用必要性与价值
若您热衷于本区域的杂草管控工作，具备杂草识别与/或防治能力，并希望参与到保护农田与自然保护区免受杂草侵害的行动中，可注册加入该系统，成为防治行动的一员。
Weedspotter杂草监测门户网站与杂草测绘应用可推动多方协同合作，提升本区域杂草管控效率，具体支持所有用户完成以下操作：
- 针对新传入或新出现的杂草发布早期预警
- 追踪不同时间、不同地点的杂草发生情况变化
- 追踪杂草防治作业开展情况，包括实施地点、目标杂草种类与防治工作成效
通过掌握本区域杂草动态，个人（如农场主）、团体（如Landcare与ParkCare组织）与政府可实现以下目标：
- 防范新传入或新出现的杂草演变为入侵性有害问题
- 基于自身关注区域，优先安排杂草防治作业
在气候变化背景下，识别并管控新出现的杂草尤为关键：此前无法适应本区域气候的杂草正陆续出现，并具备演变为入侵性有害杂草的风险。

三、平台与应用功能模块
本平台与应用包含以下内容：
1. 关注杂草物种库
本模块涵盖以下内容：
- 针对10个地方政府辖区与ACT政府的关注杂草物种：新南威尔士州（NSW）地方政府辖区（local government areas, LGA）与ACT政府已认定的潜在有害、已初现危害或已在本区域广泛分布的杂草列表（不同地方政府辖区与ACT的关注杂草种类存在差异）。其中，ACT与新南威尔士州地方政府重点关注具备演变为入侵性有害杂草风险的新传入或新出现物种
- 物种详情页：所有列入关注杂草列表的物种均包含详细资料与实拍照片，辅助用户在野外（通过应用）或访问网站时准确识别杂草物种
- 杂草识别工具：可协助用户识别难以分辨的杂草（包含与杂草外形相似的非杂草物种，如本土替代植物），支持通过应用或网站完成识别流程
2. 测绘功能与数据提交指南
网站与应用共提供三类测绘工具，均可支持用户拍摄关注杂草、目标杂草入侵点或杂草防治活动相关照片，并提交至门户网站，辅助确认杂草身份并追踪随时间的变化情况：
- 基础杂草测绘工具：支持用户在野外或通过门户网站，针对单个地点的单一杂草物种进行数字化记录
- 高级杂草测绘工具：支持用户在野外直接通过门户网站进行数字化记录，涵盖单个地点的多物种杂草入侵情况，包括入侵区域与入侵密度
- 杂草治理记录工具：用于记录特定地点的杂草防治/管理相关信息
如需使用测绘工具，需先完成网站注册。
3. 历史杂草观测记录
本板块支持用户查看自身提交的测绘记录，以及本区域内其他用户提交的观测记录，可按地点、物种、日期与记录类型（单一物种记录、多物种记录或杂草防治记录）进行筛选；支持对数据进行分析、生成报告与地图，并可打印相关文档。本板块同时提供指向澳大利亚生物多样性地图集主站的链接，以及可通过ALA网站访问的全部生物多样性数据。

四、应用获取方式
澳大利亚生物多样性地图集（ALA）ACT与南部台地Weedspotter手机应用可在iPhone与Android智能手机上使用，支持通过苹果App Store或谷歌Play商店下载获取。