The Tennyson sand dunes: Vegetation structure and conservation status

Abstract

The Tennyson sand dunes represent one of the last largely natural dune communities along the Adelaide metropolitan coast, a region where there is a considerable effort being expended by local councils and community groups on revegetation for dune stability, habitat for native animals and for shoreline visual amenity. This study represents the first quantitative analysis of their vegetation. Fifty-two species were encountered, 22 of them exotic, and cluster analysis and ordination recovered three quadrat groups on the basis of species relative cover, representing fore-, mid-, and backdune quadrats.