Abstract
The clumping index (CI) describing the spatial pattern and distribution of leaves in vegetation canopy, is a key parameter for accurate retrieval of leaf area index (LAI). In this study, we focused on the individual tree-level CI (i.e., total CI) and decomposed it into the crown shape-related CI and crown internal structure-related CI. Using the simulation datasets from OnyxTree realistic structure software, we calculated all the above-mentioned CI for tree crowns with LAI values from three tree species. We also analyzed the angular effect of these CI. Results showed that the crown shape-related CI generally dominated the clumping effect of leaves although it varied with zenith angle. Nevertheless, the internal structure-related CI was hard to be neglected, especially for the case of Platanus with high LAI. Our results also demonstrated that the role of each kind of CI depended on the tree species.
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