New publication: LiDAR-based simulation of tree-and stand development after bark beetle disturbances

New publication: LiDAR-based simulation of tree-and stand development after bark beetle disturbances

January 3, 2017

In a newly-published paper featuring Steven Hill and Hooman Latifi from Dept. of Remote Sensing, very high resolution remote sensing (laser scanner data and aerial orthophotos) were used in a full remote sensing-based framework to study post-disturbance tree and stand development, particularly in its early seral stages.

Future stand development on test sites 1–5 simulated for a period of 80 years. A) Number of trees (N) per test site. B) Basal area (BA) of trees per hectare. C) Mean tree height (MH). D) Tree height variation (MAD = mean absolute deviation).

 

The first step involved extraction of single trees and their allometric attributes form LiDAR-based canopy height models, after which the extracted tree locations were additionally validated by a sample based scheme implemented on aerial photos. The single tree based forest  growth simulator SILVA ver. 2.2 was then used to simulate the stand development during a 80 year simulation period. In addition, landscape and spatial point pattern metrics were calculated to assess the structural heterogeneity. The results approve that natural regeneration of post disturbed forest  stands reveal structural heterogeneity even at the early-seral stages. Furthermore, the study showed that the structural heterogeneity might already be determined in the early successional stages. following the bark beetle disturbances. This study open up interesting horizons in how remote sensing data and methods can be combined with spatial statistics to investigate early-phase forest dynamics in natural stands.

Further information on the published material can be found here.

Bibliography:

Hill, S., Latifi, H., Heurich, M., Müller, J. 2017. Individual-tree- and stand-based development following natural disturbance in a heterogeneously structured forest: a LiDAR-based approach. Ecological Informatics 38, 12-25. DOI: dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ecoinf.2016.12.004

you may also like:

Presentation at the Biomet conference

Presentation at the Biomet conference

Presentation at the Biomet conference   Last week, our team participated in the Biomet conference organized by the German Meteorological Service (DWD) and the German Meteorological Society (DMG). Held in Offenbach am Main, this conference brought together experts...

New publication on urban expansion simulation

New publication on urban expansion simulation

New publication on urban expansion simulation   Researchers from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology of the ETH Zurich, the Department of Architecture of the University of Cambridge and the Earth Observation Center (EOC) of the German Aerospace Center (DLR)...

EAGLE workshop on Earth Observation application

EAGLE workshop on Earth Observation application

Our first EAGLE workshop on Earth Observation applications covered various topics. After a heartily welcome by Tobias Ullmann did more than 50 participants listen to the following talks:     Ása Aðalsteinsdóttir: “SAR Monitoring in Iceland”     Katrin Wernicke:...