Biological diversity is a key component in assessing ecosystem health. Alteration, degradation and loss of habitat due to human influence is currently the primary stressor resulting in decreases in diversity. Reliable assessment of large areas in terms of biological integrity are needed for conservation and preservation efforts. Remotely sensed data provide an integrated view of reflected electromagnetic energy over large areas of the earth. These energy patterns provide unique spectral signatures which can be correlated to land cover and habitat. This research sought relationships between traditional ecological measures and information gathered from satellite digital imagery. Reliable interpretation of earth surface characteristics relies largely on accurate rectification to a map projection and subsequent thematic classification. Use of the Global Positioning System (GPS) for rectification was superior than digitizing topographical maps. Differentially corrected GPS locations provided optimum rectification with SPOT satellite imagery while marginally better rectifications were obtained for Landsat MSS imagery using uncorrected GPS positions. SPOT imagery provided more accurate land cover classifications than did MSS. Detection of temporal land cover change using MSS imagery was hampered by confusion among intermediate successional classes. Confusion between upland and bottomland forest classes occurred with both SPOT and MSS. Landscape analyses using thematic maps produced from the previously discussed endeavors suggested that terrestrial habitat in the Ray Roberts Lake area became more fragmented and complex in shape. Habitat patches became smaller but more numerous. Forested areas were most effected and conservation efforts should focus on management strategies that promote vegetation succession and forest maturation. Remotely sensed SPOT data were successfully used to predict tree basal area. There were no significant relationships found with other in situ measures or between MSS data and any vegetation measures. Remote sensing provided information suitable for large scale projects concerning landscape-level ecological issues. Rectification and classification accuracies were the primary factors influencing meaningful interpretation. Project goals should determine the scale of remotely sensed data and acceptable level of accuracy.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:unt.edu/info:ark/67531/metadc500958 |
| Date | 12 1900 |
| Creators | Smith, David P. (David Paul), 1956- |
| Contributors | Atkinson, Samuel F., Kennedy, James H., Waller, William T., Dickson, Kenneth L., Acevedo, Miguel F. |
| Publisher | University of North Texas |
| Source Sets | University of North Texas |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis or Dissertation |
| Format | viii, 146 leaves : ill. (some col.), maps (some col.), Text |
| Coverage | United States - Texas |
| Rights | Public, Copyright, Copyright is held by the author, unless otherwise noted. All rights reserved., Smith, David P. (David Paul), 1956- |
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