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This study examines vascular plant species richness along an altitudinal gradient in alpine Australia. Vascular plant composition and soil temperature records were obtained for Wve summits (from 1729 m to 2114 m a.s.l.) using sampling protocols from the Global Observation Research Initiative in Alpine Environments program. Species richness was examined against altitude, aspect and climatic variables at diVerent spatial scales (10 £ 10 cm quadrats, 1 m 2 quadrats, clusters of 4 * 1 m 2 quadrats, for the summit area above a line 5 m altitudinally below the summit (the ¡5 m isoline), for the extended summit down to the ¡10 m isoline). About 75 taxa (70 species, 5 graminoid genera) were recorded, 9 of which are endemic to the small alpine area of »100 km 2 . There were signiWcant linear relationships between species richness and altitude and climatic variables for the top to ¡5 isolines on the summits. However, there was no consistent pattern for species richness at other spatial scales, altitude, aspect or climatic variables. The proportion of species for the whole summits with localised distributions (local endemics) increased with altitude. Predicted increasing temperatures and reduced snowcover is likely to result in an increase in species richness as shrubs, herbs and introduced weeds become more common at higher altitude. Because Australian alpine areas occur in narrow altitudinal bands with no nival zone, there are no higher altitudinal refuges available for alpine species. Therefore many of these species are likely to be at risk of extinction from climate change.

Visitation levels are on the rise in protected areas throughout the world. In response, many icon sites are showing signs of overuse and more protected-area managers report tourism and recreation as threats to sustainable management. Clearly, there is a growing need to assess (monitor) and manage visitors to mitigate their impacts. In this paper, we articulate why targeted visitor-impact monitoring matters and highlight how existing monitoring programmes fail to deliver the necessary information to protected-area managers. We suggest that the availability and quality of visitor data are currently insufficient to facilitate the development of proactive management strategies in most protected areas. We call for more scale-sensitive (time and space) collection of visitor load and environmental (response) data. Specifically, since icon sites (like waterfalls and mountain peaks) are the focus of visitor motivations and activities, we highlight the case for proactive assessment, management and reporting of condition at these sites. Ultimately, visitor trends will be influenced by visitor management. If visitor activities degrade the icon, the financial benefits of tourism and recreation to a protected area may not be sustainable. In addition, the conservation and protection objectives of the protected area will also not be met.