Redmap Victoria: Community-Sighted Marine Algae and Plant Species

Victoria's Redmap project collects community sightings of uncommon marine algae and plant species along the coast. The dataset includes verified and anecdotal records with species, location, date, and optional biological and environmental data, mapped to show potential distribution changes. Data is managed by the Australian Ocean Data Network and is subject to a three-year embargo, with spatial accuracy reduced.

Use Cases

• Modeling potential marine species distribution shifts based on community-sighted location data.
• Analyzing the relationship between species sightings and optional environmental variables like water temperature and depth.
• Studying the efficacy of citizen science verification methods by comparing photo-verified and anecdotal sighting records.
• Mapping temporal trends in uncommon marine species occurrences along the Victorian coastline.

Strengths

• Includes both verified (with photo) and community (anecdotal) sighting records, providing a breadth of observational data.
• Collects optional biological data (sex, size, weight) and environmental data (water depth, temperature, habitat) for contextual analysis.
• Data is associated with a live source and will be updated over time to track long-term changes.

Limitations

• Spatial elements have reduced accuracy, which may limit precise geographic analysis.
• Subject to a three-year embargo, meaning the dataset does not contain data less than three years old.
• Row count and specific column definitions are unknown, requiring inspection after download.

Provenance

Source

Australian Ocean Data Network via the Redmap community science project.

Collection Method

Community-submitted sightings, with a portion verified by marine biologists based on submitted photographs.

Time Range

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Freshness

Last updated 2026-06-27 21:10:13.375907; associated with live data.

Geography

Coastal regions of Victoria, Australia.