We are combining high-resolution spatial imagery with ground-collected data to create detailed classification maps of native and non-native plants on Lāna‘i. We are also using the high-resolution maps, historical satellite and aerial imagery to analyze changes in ‘ua‘u - Hawaiian petrel - nesting habitat. For the first time at island scales in Hawai’i, this species-level mapping uses high resolution - within a meter - satellite imagery with AI classification methods. This work can serve as a template for mapping on the other islands.
Overview
There is an ongoing landscape-scale effort to restore a portion of important ecological and cultural features on Lāna‘i. However, there is no reliable baseline data about the current state of vegetation, which is essential to monitor effects of restoration efforts and to fine-tune plans along the way. To address this gap, a two-fold approach is underway to inform conservation work within the Project Area – the eastern portion of the island spanning from the Keomoku coast up to the island’s highest area above Lāna‘ihale.
USGS, in partnership with Hawai‘i Cooperative Studies Unit at the University of Hawai‘i at Hilo, University of Hawai‘i at Manoa, and Pulama Lāna‘i, is developing high-resolution vegetation maps for the Project Area to identify recent habitat loss and incipient invasive plant populations.
Objectives:
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Characterize vegetation communities across the landscape to serve as the foundation for developing resource management strategies.
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Create fine-scale vegetation models to track changes in the uluhe - Dicranopteris linearis - a native fern that provides nesting habitat for ‘ua‘u - Pterodroma sanwichensis - at Lāna‘ihale.
Other potential uses:
Vegetation maps can be used by to managers to track the impacts of planned ungulate - hooved animal - suppression within the Project Area. Changes in wildfire fuel loads after ungulate removal aren’t assessable without these vegetation datasets.
These high-resolution maps - approximately one meter - can aid in erosion and sediment control planning by quantifying changes in bare soil exposure and characteristics of areas vulnerable to and sources of erosion.
Vegetation models provide a tool for land managers to understand baseline vegetation cover and track changes in vegetation over time in response to on-the-ground efforts and invasion and climatic changes.
We are combining high-resolution spatial imagery with ground-collected data to create detailed classification maps of native and non-native plants on Lāna‘i. We are also using the high-resolution maps, historical satellite and aerial imagery to analyze changes in ‘ua‘u - Hawaiian petrel - nesting habitat. For the first time at island scales in Hawai’i, this species-level mapping uses high resolution - within a meter - satellite imagery with AI classification methods. This work can serve as a template for mapping on the other islands.
Overview
There is an ongoing landscape-scale effort to restore a portion of important ecological and cultural features on Lāna‘i. However, there is no reliable baseline data about the current state of vegetation, which is essential to monitor effects of restoration efforts and to fine-tune plans along the way. To address this gap, a two-fold approach is underway to inform conservation work within the Project Area – the eastern portion of the island spanning from the Keomoku coast up to the island’s highest area above Lāna‘ihale.
USGS, in partnership with Hawai‘i Cooperative Studies Unit at the University of Hawai‘i at Hilo, University of Hawai‘i at Manoa, and Pulama Lāna‘i, is developing high-resolution vegetation maps for the Project Area to identify recent habitat loss and incipient invasive plant populations.
Objectives:
-
Characterize vegetation communities across the landscape to serve as the foundation for developing resource management strategies.
-
Create fine-scale vegetation models to track changes in the uluhe - Dicranopteris linearis - a native fern that provides nesting habitat for ‘ua‘u - Pterodroma sanwichensis - at Lāna‘ihale.
Other potential uses:
Vegetation maps can be used by to managers to track the impacts of planned ungulate - hooved animal - suppression within the Project Area. Changes in wildfire fuel loads after ungulate removal aren’t assessable without these vegetation datasets.
These high-resolution maps - approximately one meter - can aid in erosion and sediment control planning by quantifying changes in bare soil exposure and characteristics of areas vulnerable to and sources of erosion.
Vegetation models provide a tool for land managers to understand baseline vegetation cover and track changes in vegetation over time in response to on-the-ground efforts and invasion and climatic changes.