| Title |
Potential use of 3D-derived products generated from unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) imagery for monitoring forest degradation and woodland structure changes in the Namibian dry woodlands (SASSCAL Book, Biodiversity & Ecology 6) |
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| Author |
Nichola M. Knox, Ben J. Strohbach and Vera De Cauwer |
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| Abstract |
Woodlands in the SASSCAL region are variable in terms of species composition, density, and structure. Though many of the species are valued for their timber, management and effective monitoring of these woodlands pose several challenges, such as inaccessibility and limited funding for agencies to regularly monitor the woodlands (De Cauwer et al., 2018).
Different remote sensing approaches (in terms of data and analysis) have been demonstrated to be efficient mechanisms for monitoring changes in woodland cover. The use of optical remote sensing in monitoring dry woodlands has proved challenging and resulted in underestimating the cover and distribution of open woodlands (Bastin et al., 2017). With the use of an integrated LiDAR and SAR approach, Mathieu et al. (2018) have demonstrated an effective means to assessing the distribution and fractional woody cover of savanna forests (including the dry woodlands of Namibia). For regional scales, this method is likely to pave the way for future monitoring of dry woodlands. Such regional-scale monitoring, however, will not enable forest managers to capture and monitor localised changes that occur in the dry woodlands as a result of forest degradation caused by extraction of timber for construction
and carving, firewood collection, etc. Strohbach (2018) has been able, with the use of UAV technology, in particular by combining a UAV-derived digital surface model (DSM) and RGB imagery, to compare the degree of deforestation and forest degradation, at a small scale, in the Omusati region (Fig. 4-6 in Strohbach, 2018). Here we wish to present an
approach for analysing UAV-derived 3D products, generated during processing, to quantify structural properties of woodlands, which could then be used to monitor small-scale forest degradation. |
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| Citation |
Knox, N.M., Strohbach, B.J. & De Cauwer, V. (2018) Potential use of 3D-derived products generated from unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) imagery for monitoring forest degradation and woodland structure changes in the Namibian dry woodlands In: Climate change and adaptive land management in southern Africa – assessments, changes, challenges, and solutions (ed. by Revermann, R., Krewenka, K.M., Schmiedel, U., Olwoch, J.M., Helmschrot, J. & Jürgens, N.), pp. 378-379, Biodiversity & Ecology, 6, Klaus Hess Publishers, Göttingen & Windhoek. doi:10.7809/b-e.00349 |
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| DOI |
10.7809/b-e.00349 |
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