Detecting mortality induced structural and functional changes in a pinon-juniper woodland using Landsat and RapidEye time series

Dan J. Krofcheck; Jan U. H. Eitel; Lee A. Vierling; Urs Schulthess; Timothy M. Hilton; Eva Dettweiler-Robinson; Rosemary L. Pendleton; Marcy E. Litvak

doi:10.1016/j.rse.2013.11.009

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Detecting mortality induced structural and functional changes in a pinon-juniper woodland using Landsat and RapidEye time series

Formally Refereed

Authors:

Dan J. Krofcheck, Jan U. H. Eitel, Lee A. Vierling, Urs Schulthess, Timothy M. Hilton, Eva Dettweiler-Robinson, Rosemary L. Pendleton, Marcy E. Litvak

Year:

2014

Type:

Scientific Journal

Station:

Rocky Mountain Research Station

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rse.2013.11.009

Source:

Remote Sensing of Environment. 151: 102-113.

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Abstract

Pinon-juniper (PJ) woodlands have recently undergone dramatic drought-induced mortality, triggering broad scale structural changes in this extensive Southwestern US biome. Given that climate projections for the region suggest widespread conifer mortality is likely to continue into the next century, it is critical to better understand how this climate-induced change in vegetation structure alters ecosystem function (e.g., productivity, biogeochemical cycling, energy partitioning) in PJ woodlands. Data from satellite remote sensing could potentially help to gain some of this understanding. However, relatively little is known about the suitability of satellite remote sensing for monitoring mortality induced structural and functional changes in PJ woodlands, a semi-arid biome characterized by sparse vegetation that complicates remote sensing of vegetation properties. Herewe examined the potential role of satellite remote sensing to better understand structural and functional changes that take place in PJ woodlands as they respond to and recover from climate induced mortality events. We used time series medium (30 ? 30 m) and high (

Keywords

semi-arid, high resolution, time-series, ecosystem disturbance, eddy-covariance, red-edge

Citation

Krofcheck, Dan J.; Eitel, Jan U. H.; Vierling, Lee A.; Schulthess, Urs; Hilton, Timothy M.; Dettweiler-Robinson, Eva; Pendleton, Rosemary; Litvak, Marcy E. 2014. Detecting mortality induced structural and functional changes in a pinon-juniper woodland using Landsat and RapidEye time series. Remote Sensing of Environment. 151: 102-113.