Remote Sensing of Sonoran Desert Vegetation Structure and Phenology with Ground-Based LiDAR

Abstract: Long-term vegetation monitoring efforts have become increasingly important for understanding ecosystem response to global change. Many traditional methods for monitoring can be infrequent and limited in scope. Ground-based LiDAR is one remote sensing method that offers a clear advancement to monitor vegetation dynamics at high spatial and temporal resolution. We determined the effectiveness of LiDAR to detect intra-annual variabil ity in vegetation structure at a long-te rm Sonoran Desert monitoring plot dominated by cacti, deciduous and evergreen shrubs. Monthly repeat LiDAR scans of perennial plant canopies over the course of one year had high precision. LiDAR measurements of canopy height and area were accurate with respect to total station survey measurements of individual plants. We found an increase in the number of LiDAR vegetation returns following the wet North American Monsoon season. This intra-annual variability in vegetation struct ure detected by LiDAR was attr ibutable to a drought deciduous

[1]  Alan H. Strahler,et al.  Measuring Effective Leaf Area Index, Foliage Profile, and Stand Height in New England Forest Stands Using a Full-Waveform Ground-Based Lidar , 2011 .

[2]  Yong Pang,et al.  Characterizing forest canopy structure with lidar composite metrics and machine learning , 2011 .

[3]  Frederick C. Meinzer,et al.  Turgor and osmotic relations of the desert shrub Larrea tridentata , 1986 .

[4]  R. Higgins,et al.  Influence of the North American Monsoon System on the U.S. Summer Precipitation Regime , 1997 .

[5]  Raymond M. Turner,et al.  A Debt to the Past: Long-term and Current Plant Research at Tumamoc Hill in Tucson, Arizona , 2010 .

[6]  Anthony M. Filippi,et al.  Assessment of available rangeland woody plant biomass with a terrestrial lidar system. , 2012 .

[7]  Robert H. Webb,et al.  A comparison of methods to assess long-term changes in Sonoran Desert vegetation , 2011 .

[8]  S. Szarek,et al.  Ecophysiological studies of Sonoran Desert plants , 1976, Oecologia.

[9]  J. E. Bowers,et al.  Effects of drought on shrub survival and longevity in the northern Sonoran Desert1 , 2005 .

[10]  D. Goldberg,et al.  Vegetation Change and Plant Demography in Permanent Plots in the Sonoran Desert , 1986 .

[11]  Stuart P. Hardegree,et al.  Lidar‐derived estimate and uncertainty of carbon sink in successional phases of woody encroachment , 2013 .

[12]  J. E. Bowers,et al.  Regeneration of triangle-leaf bursage (Ambrosia deltoidea: Asteraceae): Germination behavior and persistent seed bank , 2002 .

[13]  Cynthia S. A. Wallace,et al.  Quantifying soil surface change in degraded drylands: Shrub encroachment and effects of fire and vegetation removal in a desert grassland , 2012 .

[14]  N. Glenn,et al.  LiDAR measurement of sagebrush steppe vegetation heights , 2006 .

[15]  J. E. Bowers,et al.  HAS CLIMATIC WARMING ALTERED SPRING FLOWERING DATE OF SONORAN DESERT SHRUBS? , 2007 .

[16]  J. E. Bowers,et al.  A Debt to the Future: Achievement of the Desert Laboratory, Tumamoc Hill, Tucson, Arizona , 2010 .

[17]  J. Eitel,et al.  A lightweight, low cost autonomously operating terrestrial laser scanner for quantifying and monitoring ecosystem structural dynamics , 2013 .

[18]  J. Eitel,et al.  Simultaneous measurements of plant structure and chlorophyll content in broadleaf saplings with a terrestrial laser scanner , 2010 .

[19]  Jorge A. Santiago-Blay,et al.  Desert Plants and their Exudates , 2010 .

[20]  Hugh G. Gauch,et al.  Model Evaluation by Comparison of Model-Based Predictions and Measured Values , 2003 .

[21]  R. Canfield,et al.  Application of the Line Interception Method in Sampling Range Vegetation , 1941 .

[22]  R. Webb,et al.  Forecasting climate change impacts to plant community composition in the Sonoran Desert region , 2012 .

[23]  Raymond M. Turner,et al.  The Desert Laboratory Repeat Photography Collection - An Invaluable Archive Documenting Landscape Change , 2007 .

[24]  Robert H. Webb,et al.  Employing lidar to detail vegetation canopy architecture for prediction of aeolian transport , 2013 .

[25]  R. K. Monson,et al.  Ecophysiological studies of sonoran Desert plants , 1979, Oecologia.

[26]  Raymond M. Turner,et al.  One hundred and six years of population and community dynamics of Sonoran Desert Laboratory perennials , 2013 .

[27]  J. Eitel,et al.  Quantifying aboveground forest carbon pools and fluxes from repeat LiDAR surveys , 2012 .

[28]  Jingjue Jiang,et al.  Assessing leaf photoprotective mechanisms using terrestrial LiDAR: towards mapping canopy photosynthetic performance in three dimensions. , 2014, The New phytologist.

[29]  Effie Southworth Spalding,et al.  Mechanical Adjustment of the Suaharo (Cereus giganteus) to Varying Quantities of Stored Water , 1905 .

[30]  J. R. Rosell-Polo,et al.  Leaf area index estimation in vineyards using a ground-based LiDAR scanner , 2013, Precision Agriculture.

[31]  Alistair M. S. Smith,et al.  Discrete Return Lidar in Natural Resources: Recommendations for Project Planning, Data Processing, and Deliverables , 2009, Remote. Sens..

[32]  Jessica J. Mitchell,et al.  Small-footprint Lidar Estimations of Sagebrush Canopy Characteristics , 2011 .

[33]  Randolph H. Wynne,et al.  Estimating plot-level tree heights with lidar : local filtering with a canopy-height based variable window size , 2002 .

[34]  Emilio Chuvieco,et al.  Estimation of leaf area index and covered ground from airborne laser scanner (Lidar) in two contrasting forests , 2004 .

[35]  Seth M. Munson,et al.  Plant responses, climate pivot points, and trade-offs in water-limited ecosystems , 2013 .

[36]  S. Popescu,et al.  Seeing the Trees in the Forest: Using Lidar and Multispectral Data Fusion with Local Filtering and Variable Window Size for Estimating Tree Height , 2004 .