Wildlife Habitat Assessment Research Articles

Wildlife habitat assessment and modelling using remote sensing and GIS

Wildlife habitat assessment and modelling using remote sensing and GIS

A Decision Support System for Incorporating Wildlife Habitat Quality into Forest Planning

Abstract We developed a decision support system to address wildlife habitat quality in the strategic forest planning process. The process involves projecting wildlife habitat attributes using a growth and yield model, combining the attributes into an index of structural habitat quality, generating yield tables of structural habitat quality that can be constrained or optimized in the forest planning model, and relating prescriptions for each forest planning analysis area back to the habitat attributes. The result is a map of habitat components. This mechanism is considered the first step in our wildlife habitat assessment procedure in that it focuses on within-stand or within-analysis area structures. Since many wildlife species depend on multiple stands or analysis areas and the spatial arrangement of habitat components to meet their life requisites, the second step in our habitat assessment procedure is to apply spatially explicit wildlife habitat models to the mapped planning solution. The decision support system offers the capability to evaluate the effects of alternative management strategies on wildlife habitat in the context of a forest planning model solution. West. J. Appl. For 14(2):91-99.

An analysis of deforestation: Metrics used to describe pattern change

Cartographic modeling was used to examine the influence of deforestation on landscape pattern metrics. Progressive deforestation resulted in an increase in the spatial heterogeneity, fragmentation, and edge characteristics of a landscape while connectivity attributes varied with deforestation stage. Pattern changes in heterogeneity and edge characteristics were curvilinear, with metrics changing direction at the half-way point of deforestation. The progressive loss of forest enhanced edge length, interspersion, and convexity. There was an exponential decline in interior forest and mean patch size, while patch density and interpatch distance increased. The variability displayed by several pattern metrics reflect the unpredictability in patch disappearance. The relative contribution of each metric for discriminating between contiguous and fragmented landscape conditions was ranked using discriminant analysis. The results suggested that the mastery of landscape analysis can be directly linked to the choice of the pattern metric. Percent forest interior, contiguity, and convexity were highly significant ( P<0.001). Forest loss was also significantly reflected by mean patch size, number of patches, mean patch density, and interpatch distance. Metrics that contributed little to discrimination displayed unpredictable behavior or exhibited high variability about their mean values. This paper develops an approach for monitoring the influence of deforestation on the landscape, and examines how pattern-related habitat components are affected by deforestation. The ability to quantify pattern change resulting from deforestation has direct implications to resource management and wildlife habitat assessment. Descriptions of pattern change accompanying deforestation provide a critical component of habitat analyses.

Some Considerations in the Design of Low Cost Remotely-Piloted Aircraft for Civil Remote Sensing Applications

Early in 1982, B.C. Research began to evaluate the feasibility, advantages and limitations of using Remotely-Piloted Aircraft (RPA) to acquire aerial photography in environmental applications. Advantages associated with these aircraft include low costs, ease of operation, low noise levels, portability, safety and very low speed-low altitude capability. In the first phase of this program, a three-meter span fixed-wing aircraft was constructed from a commercial model kit and modified to carry a remotely-operated 35 mm camera system. In summer 1982, this system was used to acquire aerial photography in a variety of applications including forestry, pollution detection, wildlife habitat assessment, site mapping, publicity, wildlife inventories and shoreline mapping. Various operational limitations were encountered including difficulty of navigation and aircraft control, the fragility of the “model” airframe and its limited payload capability. These limitations are being addressed in Phase II of the program, during which a purpose-built airframe is under development, equipped with automatic flight controllers and emergency systems, and employing digitally-encoded radio signals for secure aircraft command. A black-and-white video camera installed in the airframe provides real-time imagery as an aid to navigation and photoframing.