Habitat Track
Private land supports a significant proportion of Victoria’s biodiversity, yet much of the information about the plants, animals and habitats it contains remains fragmented.
At Trust for Nature, we already collect high-quality ecological information. Across Victoria, landholders are also observing and documenting nature on their properties every day. Habitat Track is about bringing these insights together.
Habitat Track is Trust for Nature’s new biodiversity data and monitoring framework, a practical, science-led initiative designed to better understand, measure and demonstrate the impact of conservation on private land.
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Why Habitat Track Matters
Across Victoria, incredible conservation work is already happening on private land. But without the right tools and data, much of that effort remains unseen.
Habitat Track is helping change that.
By bringing together science, technology and community knowledge, Habitat Track will provide stronger evidence of conservation outcomes, better support for landholders, and smarter conservation decisions for the future.
Together, we’re creating a clearer picture of nature on private land, and ensuring it receives the recognition, protection and investment it deserves.
A Modern, Integrated Approach.
Habitat Track combines three proven streams of conservation science into one shared framework.
Together, these three streams create a powerful evidence base that supports planning, reporting, monitoring and adaptive management across protected landscapes.
Citizen Science
Empowering landholders and community members to contribute valuable biodiversity observations.
Spatial and Remote Sensing
Using technology and landscape-scale data to understand environmental change over time.
Targeted Field Surveys
Collecting detailed ecological data in priority areas to build a deeper understanding of species, habitats and conservation outcomes.
Every observation matters.
Landholders are often the people who know their properties best. Through Habitat Track, observations made by our community contribute to a growing picture of biodiversity across Victoria.
Whether it’s a rare orchid, a visiting bird, or a newly discovered insect, every observation helps build our collective understanding of nature on private land.
Using iNaturalist, you can record wildlife and plant sightings and contribute directly to the Habitat Track project.
Here’s how you can get involved:
FAQs
Where does my observation data go?
Observations submitted through the Trust for Nature Habitat Track project contribute to a growing evidence base that helps us better understand biodiversity on private land. This information may be used to inform conservation planning, monitoring, reporting and future management decisions.
Can other users see my personal information?
Your personal information remains protected. Wildlife observations may be visible through iNaturalist, however sensitive species records and location information may be obscured where appropriate to protect vulnerable species.
See Terms & Conditions below for further information.
Will I receive updates about the project?
Yes.
As Habitat Track grows, we’ll continue sharing updates, discoveries, insights and outcomes with participants. We’re excited to bring our community along on the journey.
Seeing the bigger picture.
Some of the most important conservation insights can’t be observed from the ground alone.
Habitat Track brings together a wide range of spatial, environmental and biodiversity data to help us build a clearer picture of nature on private land.
By combining information collected by Trust for Nature with datasets from organisations such as DEECA and CSIRO, we can better understand biodiversity values, habitat condition and the ecological processes shaping landscapes across Victoria.
Key data sources include:
- Trust for Nature’s own conservation datasets, including conservation covenants, nature reserves and other protected areas.
- DEECA biodiversity datasets, including species distribution models, habitat values, management priorities and fire history.
- CSIRO environmental, climate and ecological datasets, including the Habitat Condition Assessment System (HCAS).
- Published datasets relating to habitat connectivity, climate refugia, ecosystem mapping and species distributions.
- State and national biodiversity mapping and spatial planning products.
Together, these datasets provide a landscape-scale view of biodiversity across the Trust for Nature estate and beyond. They help us identify important habitats, understand how species move through the landscape, assess climate resilience, and track changes in ecological condition over time.
While field surveys and citizen science observations provide valuable information on the ground, spatial data allows us to see the bigger picture. This helps us identify conservation opportunities, prioritise action, guide restoration efforts and support strategic conservation planning across private land in Victoria.
By combining technology, science and local knowledge, Habitat Track is helping create a stronger evidence base for conservation and ensuring private land continues to play a vital role in protecting Victoria’s biodiversity.
Going deeper.
While citizen science, spatial data and remote sensing technology provide valuable information at scale, some conservation questions require a closer look.
Targeted field surveys allow ecologists and conservation specialists to collect detailed information about species, habitats and ecological condition.
These surveys help inform conservation priorities, guide management actions and ensure resources are directed where they can have the greatest impact.
Field Kit Monitoring
We’re excited to have commenced the first deployment of Habitat Track Field Kits across conservation covenants throughout Victoria.
Through a shared library of monitoring equipment, including camera traps and acoustic recorders, we’re gathering valuable information about the species that call these protected landscapes home.
The first round of field kits is being deployed across 100 conservation covenants and will help provide new insights into biodiversity on private land.
If you’re a covenantor and would like to express interest in participating in a future field kit deployment, we’d love to hear from you.
The Habitat Track team will also undertake vegetation monitoring during visits to participating covenantors, helping to build a more complete picture of habitat health.
Vegetation Monitoring
Understanding habitat health is a key part of Habitat Track.
To do this, we use the Vegetation Condition Index (VCI), a scientific framework developed by the Arthur Rylah Institute to assess the condition of native vegetation across Victoria.
The VCI compares the plants and vegetation structure found at a site with what would be expected in a healthy ecosystem of that type in that specific location. This provides a consistent, repeatable way to measure vegetation condition and track change over time.
Using the VCI helps us:
- Assess the health of native vegetation
- Monitor changes in habitat condition
- Measure the impact of conservation and restoration efforts
- Identify areas requiring conservation attention
VCI assessments complement the other components of Habitat Track by contributing information on habitat structure, natural regeneration and other ecological indicators. This data may, for example, provide important context as to why a particular species occurs at one site but not another nearby Combined with citizen science observations, field surveys and spatial data, this helps build a clearer picture of ecosystem health and resilience across private land in Victoria.
The Team Behind Habitat Track
Steven Lynch
Director of Conservation
Dr. Laurence Berry
Senior Manager Conservation Science
Dr. Chris Pocknee
Conservation Ecologist
Lauren Fraser
Senior GIS, Data and Science Officer
Terms & Conditions
Participants retain ownership of photographs, audio recordings and other material contributed through Habitat Track.
By participating, participants grant Trust for Nature a perpetual, royalty-free, non-exclusive licence to use, store, analyse, modify, reproduce, publish and share submitted material and associated biodiversity records for conservation, research, monitoring, reporting, education, promotion and other purposes consistent with Trust for Nature’s functions and objectives under the Victorian Conservation Trust Act 1972.
Trust for Nature may share biodiversity records with partner organisations and government biodiversity databases and may create, retain and use derived datasets, analyses and other products based on those records. Biodiversity records and derived products may continue to be retained and used by Trust for Nature even if the original submitted material is later withdrawn.