The word 'create' in wood on a white background

Make your own fieldwork equipment: Species coverage

Key Stage Three Key Stage Four Key Stage Five Key Stage Two Fieldwork

What you need

A 10 square x 10 square section of plastic coated wire fencing
Wire cutters
Tape

What you do

Cut your sections of fencing to ensure that each piece contains 100 squares. You can get a wide variety of types of fencing, and you may need to cut out some of the central wires in order to create a suitable sized square. Five to seven centimetre squares are an ideal size. Cover the ends of the wire that you have cut with tape to ensure safety.

When you use it

This home made quadrat can be used to calculate percentage vegetation or species coverage in an ecosystem study. It can also be used to calculate the percentages of different land uses, canopy cover or even cloud cover if it is held up and looked through.