Meetnetten.be - Occupancy estimates of priority vascular plants species in Flanders, Belgium

Frederic Piesschaert1, Wouter Van Landuyt1, Dimitri Brosens2, Toon Westra1, Peter Desmet1, Hannes Ledegen3, Roosmarijn Steeman4, Marc Pollet1, Dimitri Brosens5

1 Research Institute for Nature and Forest (INBO), , Belgium; 2 Research Institute for Nature and Forest (INBO)/ Belgian Biodiversity Platform, , Belgium; 3 Natuurpunt, ; 4 Natuurpunt, , Belgium; 5 Research Institute for Nature and Forest (INBO) / Belgian Biodiversity Platform, 

Corresponding author(s): Frederic Piesschaert (frederik.piesschaert@inbo.be)Wouter Van Landuyt (wouter.vanlanduyt@inbo.be)Dimitri Brosens (dimitri.brosens@inbo.be)Toon Westra (toon.westra@inbo.be)Peter Desmet (peter.desmet@inbo.be)Hannes Ledegen (hannes.ledegen@natuurpunt.be)Roosmarijn Steeman (roosmarijn.steeman@natuurpunt.be)Marc Pollet (marc.pollet@inbo.be), Dimitri Brosens (dimitri.brosens@inbo.be)

Received {date}; Revised {date}; Accepted {date}; Published {date}

Citation: Combination of authors, year of data paper publication (in parentheses), Title, Journal Name, Volume, Issue number (in parentheses), and doi of the data paper.

Resource Citation

Piesschaert F, Van Landuyt W, Brosens D, Westra T, Desmet P, Ledegen H, Steeman R, Pollet M (2023). Meetnetten.be - Occupancy estimates of priority vascular plants species in Flanders, Belgium. Version 1.8. Research Institute for Nature and Forest (INBO). Samplingevent dataset. https://ipt.inbo.be/resource?r=meetnetten-vaatplanten-oppervlakte-occurrences&v=1.8

Abstract

Meetnetten.be - Occupancy estimates of priority vascular plants species in Flanders, Belgium is a sampling event dataset published by the Research Institute of Nature and Forest (INBO). It is part of the Meetnetten.be suite of monitoring networks for priority species in Flanders, in which data are collected at fixed locations using a standardized protocol (https://meetnetten.be). This dataset data for 13 priority species. Here it is published as a standardized Darwin Core Archive and includes for each sampling event an eventID, date, location and sampling protocol (in the event core)and for each occurrence an occurrenceID, the occupied m² recorded, status (present/absent) and scientific name (in the occurrence extension). Issues with the dataset can be reported at https://github.com/inbo/meetnetten-occurrences/issues
Generalized and/or withheld information: as these are sensitive priority species, location information is generalized to 1, 5 or 10 km Universal Transverse Mercator (UTM) grid cells. Original locations are available upon request.
We have released this dataset to the public domain under a Creative Commons Zero waiver. We would appreciate it if you follow the INBO norms for data use (https://www.inbo.be/en/norms-data-use) when using the data. If you have any questions regarding this dataset, don't hesitate to contact us via the contact information provided in the metadata or via opendata@inbo.be.
For all published Meetnetten.be datasets, see https://www.gbif.org/dataset/search?project_id=meetnetten.be

Keywords: Samplingevent, Tracheophyta, plants, monitoring, priority species

Project details

Project title: Meetnetten.be
Personnel: Frederic Piesschaert
Funding: Flemish Government
Study area descriptions/descriptor: Flanders, Belgium
Design description: Each monitoring network consists of fixed sample locations in which target species are counted based on a standardized protocol. Data collection relies mainly on specialized volunteers, coordinated by the NGO Natuurpunt Studie. Fieldwork is planned and monitored with the web tool https://meetnetten.be, which is also used for entering the collected data.

Data published through GBIF: https://ipt.inbo.be/resource?r=meetnetten-vaatplanten-oppervlakte-occurrences

Taxonomic coverage

General taxonomic coverage description: The target plant species for Meetnetten.be are listed at https://meetnetten.be/#group-5. This dataset covers the plant occupancy per m² protocol, for which there are 13 target species.
Taxonomic ranks
Kingdom: Plantae
Phylum: Tracheophyta
Species: Potamogeton coloratus, Ranunculus ololeucos, Mentha pulegium, Utricularia ochroleuca, Wahlenbergia hederacea, Deschampsia setacea, Potamogeton acutifolius, Scirpus pungens, Halimione pedunculata, Potamogeton compressus, Scirpus triqueter, Carex diandra, Eriophorum gracile
Common names: Weegbreefonteinkruid, Witte waterranonkel, Polei, Bleekgeel blaasjeskruid, Klimopklokje, Moerassmele, Spits fonteinkruid, Stekende bies, Gesteelde zoutmelde, Plat fonteinkruid, Driekantige bies, Ronde zegge, Slank wollegras

Spatial coverage

General spatial coverage: Flanders, Belgium
Coordinates: 50°40'12''N and 51°30'36''N Latitude; 2°31'48''E and 5°56'24''E Longitude 

Temporal coverage: January 1, 2016 - December 31, 2022

Methods

Method step description: 
- . 	Researchers from INBO and Natuurpunt Studie define and document the appropriate sampling protocol for the target species.
- . 	Fieldwork is planned and coordinated by Natuurpunt Studie, using https://meetnetten.be.
- . 	Data are collected in the field by specialized volunteers, using the predefined sampling protocol.
- . 	Volunteers enter the collected data in https://meetnetten.be.
- . 	A custom SQL view is created in the meetnetten.be database to map the original data to Darwin Core as an event core, occurrence extension and measurement or fact extension.
- . 	The Darwin Core views are connected to the INBO IPT and documented with metadata.
- . 	The dataset is published and registered with GBIF.
Study extent description: To estimate the local population size, the Floron scale is used. For each species patch, volunteers estimate the numbers or the species patchusing 6 categories. A < 1m²; B = 1-5m²; C = >5-25m²; D = >25-50m² ; E = >50-500m²; F = >500-5000m²

Potamogeton coloratus	Weegbreefonteinkruid

Plantain Pondweed is a species of sunny, sometimes slightly shaded places in very clear, shallow, moderately nutrient-poor to moderately nutrient-rich, calcareous water. The species is very rare in Flanders, it is only known from a few places in the coastal dunes, the vicinity of the community of Kampenhout, the Visbeek Valley and the nature reserve Walenbos.  

Utricularia ochroleuca		Bleekgeel blaasjeskruid

Yellowishwhite Bladderwort (Utricularia ochroleuca) is a species found in sunny places in shallow, nutrient-poor, weakly to moderately acidic water, in moorland bogs and peat ponds. The species is extinct in Flanders.

Ranunculus ololeucos		Witte waterranonkel

White-flowered Buttercup is a species found at sunny sites, in shallow, stagnant, moderately nutrient-poor to moderately nutrient-rich, unpolluted, acidic, very soft, clear water, but also on summer-dry sites. The soil usually consists of peaty sand, sand orloamy sand. The species is in sharp decline in Flanders and is very rare in the Campine region and has disappeared or is extremely rare elsewhere. 

Mentha pulegium		Polei

Pennyroyal is a species found on sunny sites on moist to wet, winter-flooded, moderately nutrient-rich to nutrient-rich, disturbed soil. The species prefers places with a varying water table or trampled or grazed areas. In Flanders, only natural locations of Pennyroyal are known along the Meuse River, elsewhere in Flanders the species was introduced. 

Wahlenbergia hederacea	Klimopklokje

Ivy-leaved Bellflower is a species found on sunny to semi-shadedsites on moist to wet, moderately nutrient-poor, slightly acidic, lime-poor soil (peat and sand). It is a species of wet, peaty heathland and peat bogs, sometimes with a management of sod cutting. Ivy-leaved Bellflower is very rare in Flanders and only known from the Campine region.

Deschampsia setacea	Moerassmele

Bog Hair-grass grows in sunny places on wet, nutrient-poor to moderately nutrient-rich, weakly acidic, lime-poor soil (loamy sand, possibly covered with a thin layer of peat), with supply of base-rich groundwater and gradients. The species is very rare in the Kempen region and has declined significantly in recent decades. 

Potamogeton acutifolius	Spits fonteinkruid

Sharp-leaved Pondweed grows in sunny places in shallow, stagnant or weakly flowing, moderately nutrient-rich to nutrient-rich, but not polluted, fresh and neutral to often calcareous water with a muddy, organic soil (clay and sand, not on loam). This species is very rare in Flanders. It is most often seen in the Kempen region and the Sand and Sandy Loam region, but has declined sharply. 

Scirpus pungens		Stekende bies

Sharp Club-rush is a species of sunny, fairly open sites on wet, moderately nutrient-rich, saline or sometimes desalinated sandy soils. It is a species of water edges (silty banks, at the transition between bank thickets and cultivated land), high salt marshes, brackish reed land marshes, shallow water and grassy grasslands on sandbanks with fresh seepage. The species is very rare in Flanders with only a few growth sites along the river Scheldt.  

Halimione pedunculata	Gesteelde zoutmelde

Annual Sea Purslane is a species of sunny, more or less open places on fairly dry to usually wet, moderately nutrient-rich to nutrient-rich, salty sandy soil. It is a species of places with a strongly varying salt content, which are now and then briefly inundated by seawater. In Flanders this species is only known from the Zwin dunes, near Ostend.

Potamogeton compressus	Plat fonteinkruid

Grass-wrack Pondweed is a species of sunny sites in shallow, moderately nutrient-poor to nutrient-rich, usually unpolluted, weakly acidic to neutral, stagnant water with a bottom of low peat, venous river clay or sand. Often in places with seepage or rising groundwater. In Flanders the species is rare and is only found in the Kempen and the sand and sandy loam region.  

Scirpus triqueter		Driekantige bies

Triangular Club-rush is a species of sunny, open places in shallow, nutrient-rich water with a bottom of sand or soft silt and also grows on silt-covered rocky dike embankments. The species appears mostly in places that flood twice a day, where weakly brackish water meets fresh water. The species is very rare along the Scheldt and has declined significantly. Triangular rush is difficult to distinguish from Rough rush and Rough rush x Triangular rush. 

Carex diandra			Ronde zegge

Lesser Tussock-sedge is a species of sunny places on wet, moderately nutrient-poor, weakly acidic to calcareous soils with fairly stable water levels and also grows in stagnant, usually very shallow, fresh, moderately nutrient-poor, weakly acidic water. The species is very rare in Flanders and only grows in the Kempen. 

Eriophorum gracile		Slank wollegras

Slender Cottongrass is a species of sunny sites on wet, nutrient-poor, weakly acidic, iron-rich peat soil. The plant is very sensitive to fertilization and/or acidification. The species is very rare in Flanders and only grows in the Kempen.
Sampling description: Sampling was done using the protocol described in Van Landuyt et al. (2015) and explained to volunteers in Ledegen et al. (2017).

For Potamogeton coloratus, Utricularia ochroleuca, Wahlenbergia hederacea, Potamogeton acutifolius, Scirpus pungens	
Counting method: estimation of the occupancy in the growth area per m² from June to August. Each area has to be surveyed once every 3 years. The Floron scale is used. A<1m², B= 1-5m², C >5-25m², D>25-50m², E>50-500m², F>500-5000m².

For Ranunculus ololeucos, Carex diandra
Counting method: estimation of the occupancy of the growth area per m² from May to June.  Each area has to be surveyed once every 3 years. The Floron scale is used. A<1m², B= 1-5m², C >5-25m², D>25-50m², E>50-500m², F>500-5000m².

For Mentha pulegium
Counting method: estimation of the occupancy of the growth area per m² from July to September.  Each area has to be surveyed once every 3 years. The Floron scale is used. A<1m², B= 1-5m², C >5-25m², D>25-50m², E>50-500m², F>500-5000m².

For Deschampsia setacea, Halimione pedunculata, Potamogeton compressus
Counting method: estimation of the occupancy in the growth area per m² from July to August.  Each area has to be surveyed once every 3 years. The Floron scale is used. A<1m², B= 1-5m², C >5-25m², D>25-50m², E>50-500m², F>500-5000m².

For Scirpus triqueter
Counting method: estimation of the occupancy in the growth area per m² from mid June to mid July.  Each area has to be surveyed once every 3 years. The Floron scale is used. A<1m², B= 1-5m², C >5-25m², D>25-50m², E>50-500m², F>500-5000m².

For Eriophorum gracile
Counting method: estimation of the occupancy of the growth area per m² from May to July.  Each area has to be surveyed once every 3 years. The Floron scale is used. A<1m², B= 1-5m², C >5-25m², D>25-50m², E>50-500m², F>500-5000m².
Quality control description: Data are collected using a predefined sampling protocol.

Datasets

Dataset description
Object name: Darwin Core Archive Meetnetten.be - Occupancy estimates of priority vascular plants species in Flanders, Belgium
Character encoding: UTF-8
Format name: Darwin Core Archive format
Format version: 1.0
Distribution: https://ipt.inbo.be/archive.do?r=meetnetten-vaatplanten-oppervlakte-occurrences
Publication date of data: 2023-12-04
Language: English
Licences of use: Public Domain (CC0 1.0)

Metadata language: English
Date of metadata creation: 2022-10-28
Hierarchy level: Dataset

References
Van Landuyt, W., Provoost, S., Packet, J., Maes, D., De Bruyn, L., De Knijf, G., ... Quataert, P. (2015). Monitoringsprotocol vaatplanten. (Rapporten van het Instituut voor Natuur- en Bosonderzoek; Nr. INBO.R.2015.10039812). Brussel.
Ledegen H. & R. Steeman 2017. Veldwerkhandleiding Meetnet planten. Natuurpunt Studie, Mechelen.