Skip to main content

Evaluating the potential of full-waveform lidar for mapping pan-tropical tree species richness.

Marselis, S.M., Abernethy, K., Alonso, A., Armston, J., Baker, T.R., Bastin, J.F., Bogaert, J., Boyd, D.S., Boeckx, P., Burslem, D.F.R.P., Chazdon, R., Clark, D.B., Coomes, D., Duncanson, L., Hancock, S, Hill, R., Hopkinson, C., Kearsley, E., Kellner, J.R., Kenfack, D., Labrière, N., Lewis, S.L., Minor, D., Memiaghe, H., Monteagudo, A., Nilus, R., O'Brien, M., Phillips, O.L., Poulsen, J., Tang, H., Verbeeck, H. and Dubayah, R., 2020. Evaluating the potential of full-waveform lidar for mapping pan-tropical tree species richness. Global Ecology and Biogeography, 29 (10), 1799-1816.

Full text available as:

[img]
Preview
PDF
Main Text - Second Revision.pdf - Accepted Version
Available under License Creative Commons Attribution Non-commercial.

1MB

DOI: 10.1111/geb.13158

Abstract

© 2020 John Wiley & Sons Ltd Aim: Mapping tree species richness across the tropics is of great interest for effective conservation and biodiversity management. In this study, we evaluated the potential of full-waveform lidar data for mapping tree species richness across the tropics by relating measurements of vertical canopy structure, as a proxy for the occupation of vertical niche space, to tree species richness. Location: Tropics. Time period: Present. Major taxa studied: Trees. Methods: First, we evaluated the characteristics of vertical canopy structure across 15 study sites using (simulated) large-footprint full-waveform lidar data (22 m diameter) and related these findings to in-situ tree species information. Then, we developed structure–richness models at the local (within 25–50 ha plots), regional (biogeographical regions) and pan-tropical scale at three spatial resolutions (1.0, 0.25 and 0.0625 ha) using Poisson regression. Results: The results showed a weak structure–richness relationship at the local scale. At the regional scale (within a biogeographical region) a stronger relationship between canopy structure and tree species richness across different tropical forest types was found, for example across Central Africa and in South America [R2 ranging from.44–.56, root mean squared difference as a percentage of the mean (RMSD%) ranging between 23–61%]. Modelling the relationship pan-tropically, across four continents, 39% of the variation in tree species richness could be explained with canopy structure alone (R2 =.39 and RMSD% = 43%, 0.25-ha resolution). Main conclusions: Our results may serve as a basis for the future development of a set of structure–richness models to map high resolution tree species richness using vertical canopy structure information from the Global Ecosystem Dynamics Investigation (GEDI). The value of this effort would be enhanced by access to a larger set of field reference data for all tropical regions. Future research could also support the use of GEDI data in frameworks using environmental and spectral information for modelling tree species richness across the tropics.

Item Type:Article
ISSN:1466-822X
Additional Information:Funding Information Natural Environment Research Council. Grant Numbers: NE/B503384/1, NE/N012542/1 BIO‐RED, NER/A/S/2000/01002 Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation. Grant Number: 1656 National Science Foundation. Grant Numbers: 0939907, DEB‐0424767, DEB‐0639393, DEB‐1147429 NASA Headquarters. Grant Numbers: 80NSSC17K0321, 80NSSC18K0708, NNL15AA03C European Research Council. Grant Number: ERC Advanced Grant 291585 – ‘T‐FORCES’
Uncontrolled Keywords:biodiversity; canopy structure; GEDI; lidar ;plant area index; tropical forests
Group:Faculty of Science & Technology
ID Code:34403
Deposited By: Symplectic RT2
Deposited On:05 Aug 2020 14:49
Last Modified:14 Mar 2022 14:23

Downloads

Downloads per month over past year

More statistics for this item...
Repository Staff Only -