Systematic atlasing in Hessequa – Report on the first cycle of seasonal monitoring

Systematic atlasing in Hessequa

Abstract

Bird atlasing in the Hessequa region of the Western Cape has progressed beyond mapping to monitoring. During a three-year period within 2014/17, the U3A Stilbaai Bird Group upgraded the distribution maps using a strategy which aimed to even out coverage per grid cell, and achieve minimum mapping standards. In the two-year period December 2017 to November 2019, the group implemented a new strategy that would result in each of the 75 pentads in the Hessequa Atlas Area being atlased in each of the four seasons over a two-year period. Using a chessboard pattern to split the 75 pentads into two sets, the first set was atlased in summer and winter in the first year and autumn and spring of the second year. The second set was atlased in autumn and spring of the first year, and summer and winter of the second year. This paper reports the successful completion of the first monitoring cycle.