Print PageInvasive plant species are a significant part of global change. As such, numerous information and monitoring networks focus on understanding their distribution, potential distribution, and impacts. Understanding both the cause and consequence of invasive species on continental-scale ecology is one of several questions guiding the design of the National Ecological Observatory Network (NEON).
Quantification of the distribution and impact of invasive plant species is challenging. Field crews are expensive, mapping efforts are often biased to easily accessible areas, and a complete census is usually impossible. Given these challenges, understanding the distribution of species with the assistance of remotely sensed imagery is becoming increasingly popular. The NEON airborne observation package will likely contribute to the understanding and development of this approach. The relevant airborne observation platform (AOP) consists of an imaging spectrometer operating in the visible to shortwave IR spectral region and a waveform light detection and ranging instrument (wLiDAR).
Results/Conclusions
In the summer of 2010, ground measurements of an invasive palm species (Butia capitata) were made in conjunction with a prototype flight of the AOP platform at the Ordway-Swisher Biological Reserve in Florida to evaluate ability to:
- Detect distribution of Butia capitata based on the spectral signature and/or a combination of hyperspectral signature and wLiDAR structure
- Isolate the spectral signature of Butia capitata by relating mapped distributions to the aerial information
- Understand thresholds for airborne detection of Butia capitata based on size and cover of the individual palm and overstory canopy
- Compare airborne models of detection to climatic-envelope models based on mapped locations on the ground and environmental descriptors of the target landscape.
