Tennyson Dunes Coastal Field

Report

Contents
- Introduction and annotated map secondary resources
- Methodology
- Analysis, recommendations, and reflection and references

1
Introduction
The Tennyson dunes has a high significance because of its geographical and cultural
importance. It is one of the last remaining three tiered dune system (primary, secondary, and
tertiary dunes) that originally covered more than 30 kilometres of Adelaide's coastline. Dune
systems similar to the Tennyson have played a vital role in defending inland communities
from storm-caused sea intrusions and erosion. The Kaurna people spent their summers here
feeding on waterbirds, fish, and shellfish, and a place where Kaurna Elders passed on stories
to the next generation about their people and their Country. Tennyson Dunes is regarded as
Adelaide's fourth botanic garden, with 52 plant species, 16 of which are of conservation
importance.

Annotated map and secondary resources

2
 Fieldwork Type
Human use assessment
Bipolar qualitative analysis
Annotated sketch
Photos
Flora line transect
On site Observations
Purpose of Fieldwork
The purpose of the human use
assessment is to identify hazards
such as litter and humans (cause
of litter). It additionally servers
the purpose of evaluation of the
hazards, then potential removal
of hazard or minimize the level
of its risk by adding control
measures, as necessary.
The purpose of the bipolar
qualitative analysis is it
determines the area's quality
depending on your viewpoint.
The purpose of the annotated
sketch is that it is a visual picture
of the study area and what is
available. The labels help
determine the different aspects of
the area.
It demonstrates the current area
and has potential for examination
to increase sustainability in the
area
The purpose of the flora line
transect is to demonstrate the
number of different species of
plants and the areas biodiversity.
The purpose of the on-site
observations was to determine
Methodology
the different natural processes,
human interference, and
management of the area.
Time to Execute Limitations of this Fieldwork
Approximately 45 The limitations to this fieldwork are time
minutes to 1 hour limit and area. The time limit is a huge
limitation as we can’t accurately be able
to count how many pieces of rubbish
there are and how many people walk
through the area. The scope of the area is
another limitation because we were
limited by the walkways and were unable
to walk through the dunes to see the
entire area.
Approximately 10 The limitation again was the scope of the
minutes area is another limitation because we
were limited by the walkways and were
unable to walk through the dunes to see
the entire area. An additional limitation is
that it is based on a single individual’s
viewpoint, which limits the quality of
data.
Approximately 20 The limitation of the annotated sketch is
minutes It does not accurately depict everything
that is present at the location. Another
limitation is that we did have all the
drawing equipment for a precise
annotated map
Approximately 45 The camera quality is a limitation as it
minutes to 1 hour constrains many things such as view,
photo quality and aerial views.
Approximately 10 The limitations is the scope of the area is
minutes. because we were limited by the walkways
and were unable pick a very biodiverse
area to indicate the biodiversity of the
area. Another limitation was the size of
the area we were able to analyse, A
bigger area the more accurate the data.
Approximately 45 The limitations of the scope of the area is
minutes to 1 hour another limitation because we were
limited by the walkways and were unable
to walk through the dunes to observe the
entire area which hindered the data.
3
Analysis
Some observations of various natural qualities, including vegetation, dunes, and the ocean. Human
involvement can be seen in the form of signs, fences, paths, carparks, residential structures, habitat
deterioration, the introduction of new species, and pollution. The majority of the vegetation along the
trail through Tennyson Dunes was lush and robust, although there were a few dead trees and bushes
spread around. The annotated sketch and line transect demonstrate the diversity and abundance of
plants in a given area. I noticed fewer trees and more plants, bushes, and weeds as I moved deeper
into the dune system. There are numerous different plants and bushes, showing a high level of
biodiversity in this area. My Flora Transect took me past an area where I noticed a lot of dead plants,
and I was intrigued as to why they were dead. The fact that the dunes are so close to the salt water is
perhaps the main factor contributing to their deterioration. It was also evident that humans have had a
negative impact on the dunes systems leaving around twenty pieces of noticeable rubbish and highly
possible for many other pieces of rubbish that went unnoticed. This significantly impacts the health of
the different species of flora.  

Discussion
The first improvement that I would install would be bins and other facilities to accommodate humans
walking through the dunes. It would help mitigate the risk that humans pose on the dunes while allowing
us to walk through without causing harm.
The second improvement is that I would add some freshwater irrigation. I would not disrupt the dune
system but add a fresh water supply to help maintain the flora without disrupting the dune system.
The third improvement would be to the walking trails and fences. I would introduce improve the fences
to make them actually effective as they weren’t useful in protecting the dunes. The walkways are old and
were creaking and breaking. I would replace the walking ways and would add soft engineering to help
improve the walkways to bring attraction and awareness.

Conclusion
From this excursion and the preparation of this field report grew my understanding of Tennyson
Dunes and why it is such an important Australian site. Following my research and trail walk, I noticed
a few things about the plants and obtained a better understanding of Tennyson Dunes management,
including why different management strategies are utilised.

http://tennyson.org.au/assets/FastFactsTennysonDunes2017.pdf

https://www.environment.sa.gov.au/goodliving/posts/2018/02/tennyson-dunes-trail