Small Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (Micro-Uavs, Drones) in Plant Ecology

• Published in: Applications in plant sciences Vol. 4; no. 9
• Main Authors: Cruzan, Mitchell B, Weinstein, Ben G, Grasty, Monica R, Kohrn, Brendan F, Hendrickson, Elizabeth C, Arredondo, Tina M, Thompson, Pamela G
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Botanical Society of America 01.09.2016; John Wiley & Sons, Inc
• Subjects: aerial drone (micro-UAV, UAS); aerial photography; aerial survey; Aerial surveys; Aircraft; Application; APPLICATION ARTICLE; Cameras; Classification; digital elevation model (DEM); digital surface model (DSM); Drones; Flowers & plants; habitats; Mapping; orthomosaic; Plant ecology; Plant sciences; Researchers; Satellites; Species; surveys; Unmanned aerial vehicles; Vegetation; vegetation mapping; United States > US; California; digital surface model (DSM); orthomosaic; vegetation mapping; digital elevation model (DEM); aerial drone (micro-UAV, UAS); aerial survey
• ISSN: 2168-0450; 2168-0450
• DOI: 10.3732/apps.1600041

Premise of the study: Low-elevation surveys with small aerial drones (micro–unmanned aerial vehicles [UAVs]) may be used for a wide variety of applications in plant ecology, including mapping vegetation over small- to medium-sized regions. We provide an overview of methods and procedures for conducting surveys and illustrate some of these applications. Methods: Aerial images were obtained by flying a small drone along transects over the area of interest. Images were used to create a composite image (orthomosaic) and a digital surface model (DSM). Vegetation classification was conducted manually and using an automated routine. Coverage of an individual species was estimated from aerial images. Results: We created a vegetation map for the entire region from the orthomosaic and DSM, and mapped the density of one species. Comparison of our manual and automated habitat classification confirmed that our mapping methods were accurate. A species with high contrast to the background matrix allowed adequate estimate of its coverage. Discussion: The example surveys demonstrate that small aerial drones are capable of gathering large amounts of information on the distribution of vegetation and individual species with minimal impact to sensitive habitats. Low-elevation aerial surveys have potential for a wide range of applications in plant ecology.