This study was inspired by coordinated international efforts, including the Convention on Biological Diversity\u2019s plea to scientists to explore using satellite remote sensing to monitor trends in global biodiversity. The logic is simple: If the biodiversity of Earth\u2019s forests can be accurately mapped, and biodiversity trends over time become apparent, researchers and policymakers can use these data to help develop mitigation efforts. The key, however, is making these maps as accurate as possible.<\/p>\n
Previous research on the topic used satellite imagery (like that seen on Google Maps) to get a coarse view of where forests are and, by extension, to predict where species might be. However, this view is two-dimensional, only showing the top of forest canopies with little insight into what is happening below\u2014the habitat for ground plants, mammals and birds. Hakkenberg\u2019s research shows it is possible to go beyond this simple bird\u2019s-eye view and use the entire 3D structure of forests to predict habitat for plants and animals.<\/p>\n \u201cWe are using NASA\u2019s Global Ecosystem Dynamics Investigation (GEDI) space-borne lidar to estimate the entire 3D structure of forests which we can then use to predict the biodiversity contained within,\u201d he said. GEDI emits invisible laser pulses toward the Earth\u2019s surface, and like radar, tracks the time difference between when the laser is emitted and when it returns to measure how far those sensed objects are. \u201cThis means we can go beyond just measuring tree heights but also get a clear picture of the entire vertical distribution of branches, leaves and needles from the ground to the top of the canopy.\u201d<\/p>\n Because forest structure is related to variation in the size and form of different species of trees, Hakkenberg and colleagues were able to use these 3D waveform profiles of forest structure to model a relationship between tree structure and tree biodiversity measured with field data from the National Ecological Observation Network across the United States, excluding Alaska.<\/p>\n \u201cWhile attention to biodiversity-structure relationships has been growing in the international research communities over the last decade, it has generally focused on tree species diversity because trees form the essential building blocks of forests and are large enough to be detected from space,\u201d Hakkenberg said. \u201cBut what was really interesting about our findings is that these biodiversity-structure relationships extend to plant biodiversity too. Even though we can’t directly detect individual ground plants from the space-borne platform, we can predict the diversity of those plants from the 3D characteristics of the trees that surround them.\u201d<\/p>\n These same relationships can be used to predict habitat for birds and arboreal mammals that each require different forest structural types.<\/p>\n Over the coming years, increasing amounts of remote sensing data from airplanes and space-borne sensors will be paired with field observations, providing scientists with efficient ways to monitor biodiversity at global scales. Through these detailed maps, more can be learned about biodiversity loss and thus where to shift efforts to slow and eventually stop it.<\/p>\n Hakkenberg and his colleagues from the School of Informatics, Computing, and Cyber Systems, including research associate Pat <\/strong>Burns<\/strong>; research professors Patrick Jantz<\/strong> and Zaneta Kaszta<\/strong>; Regent\u2019s professor Scott Goetz<\/strong>; and graduate students\u00a0Colin Quinn<\/strong> and Melissa Rose<\/strong>, are excited about their findings. They hope this study moves the needle on continental-scale biodiversity research by employing state-of-the-art NASA technologies and brings increased attention to biodiversity loss.<\/p>\n \u201cIt is extremely urgent that we devise better ways to map and monitor biodiversity at large scales, like we do for climate change,\u201d Hakkenberg said. \u201cThis study is a part of that greater effort, giving us a fighting chance to address these issues before it\u2019s too late.\u201d<\/p>\n Carly Banks | NAU Communications![\"Charts](\"http:\/\/in.nau.edu\/news\/wordpresst\/uploads\/sites\/153\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/Picture1.png\")
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\n(928) 523-5582 | carly.banks@nau.edu<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"