Plateau vegetation on sub-Antarctic Macquarie Island

A 1980 line transect survey on Macquarie Island's plateau revealed that its open herb vegetation, shaped by strong westerly winds, comprised 62 species with occurrences ranging from 16.7% to 99.5%. The cushion plant Azorella macquariensis was a dominant component, appearing at 14 of 16 sites and reaching up to 50% coverage. This pre-dieback data provides a critical baseline for assessing future changes in the island's plateau vegetation, which has since experienced severe dieback of A. macquariensis.

Selkirk, P. (2012). Plateau vegetation on sub-Antarctic Macquarie Island. Papers and Proceedings of the Royal Society of Tasmania, 71–79. https://doi.org/10.26749/rstpp.146.71