Extracting Plant Phenology Metrics in a Great Basin Watershed: Methods and Considerations for Quantifying Phenophases in a Cold Desert
Plant phenology is recognized as important for ecological dynamics. There has been a recent advent of phenology and camera networks worldwide. The established PhenoCam Network has sites in the United States, including the western states. However, there is a paucity of published research from semi-ar...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2016-11-01
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| Series: | Sensors |
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| Online Access: | http://www.mdpi.com/1424-8220/16/11/1948 |
| _version_ | 1828119115930271744 |
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| author | Keirith A. Snyder Bryce L. Wehan Gianluca Filippa Justin L. Huntington Tamzen K. Stringham Devon K. Snyder |
| author_facet | Keirith A. Snyder Bryce L. Wehan Gianluca Filippa Justin L. Huntington Tamzen K. Stringham Devon K. Snyder |
| author_sort | Keirith A. Snyder |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Plant phenology is recognized as important for ecological dynamics. There has been a recent advent of phenology and camera networks worldwide. The established PhenoCam Network has sites in the United States, including the western states. However, there is a paucity of published research from semi-arid regions. In this study, we demonstrate the utility of camera-based repeat digital imagery and use of R statistical phenopix package to quantify plant phenology and phenophases in four plant communities in the semi-arid cold desert region of the Great Basin. We developed an automated variable snow/night filter for removing ephemeral snow events, which allowed fitting of phenophases with a double logistic algorithm. We were able to detect low amplitude seasonal variation in pinyon and juniper canopies and sagebrush steppe, and characterize wet and mesic meadows in area-averaged analyses. We used individual pixel-based spatial analyses to separate sagebrush shrub canopy pixels from interspace by determining differences in phenophases of sagebrush relative to interspace. The ability to monitor plant phenology with camera-based images fills spatial and temporal gaps in remotely sensed data and field based surveys, allowing species level relationships between environmental variables and phenology to be developed on a fine time scale thus providing powerful new tools for land management. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-11T13:43:06Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-80285fc5c6c94ee1b6c7b6f08ca5aa31 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1424-8220 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-11T13:43:06Z |
| publishDate | 2016-11-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Sensors |
| spelling | doaj.art-80285fc5c6c94ee1b6c7b6f08ca5aa312022-12-22T04:21:11ZengMDPI AGSensors1424-82202016-11-011611194810.3390/s16111948s16111948Extracting Plant Phenology Metrics in a Great Basin Watershed: Methods and Considerations for Quantifying Phenophases in a Cold DesertKeirith A. Snyder0Bryce L. Wehan1Gianluca Filippa2Justin L. Huntington3Tamzen K. Stringham4Devon K. Snyder5USDA-ARS, Great Basin Rangelands Research Unit, Reno, NV 89512, USAUSDA-ARS, Great Basin Rangelands Research Unit, Reno, NV 89512, USAEnvironmental Protection Agency of Aosta Valley, ARPA Valle d’Aosta, Climate Change Unit, Saint-christophe 11020, ItalyWestern Regional Climate Center, Desert Research Institute, Reno, NV 89512, USADepartment of Agriculture, Nutrition and Veterinary Science, University of Nevada, Reno, NV 89557, USADepartment of Agriculture, Nutrition and Veterinary Science, University of Nevada, Reno, NV 89557, USAPlant phenology is recognized as important for ecological dynamics. There has been a recent advent of phenology and camera networks worldwide. The established PhenoCam Network has sites in the United States, including the western states. However, there is a paucity of published research from semi-arid regions. In this study, we demonstrate the utility of camera-based repeat digital imagery and use of R statistical phenopix package to quantify plant phenology and phenophases in four plant communities in the semi-arid cold desert region of the Great Basin. We developed an automated variable snow/night filter for removing ephemeral snow events, which allowed fitting of phenophases with a double logistic algorithm. We were able to detect low amplitude seasonal variation in pinyon and juniper canopies and sagebrush steppe, and characterize wet and mesic meadows in area-averaged analyses. We used individual pixel-based spatial analyses to separate sagebrush shrub canopy pixels from interspace by determining differences in phenophases of sagebrush relative to interspace. The ability to monitor plant phenology with camera-based images fills spatial and temporal gaps in remotely sensed data and field based surveys, allowing species level relationships between environmental variables and phenology to be developed on a fine time scale thus providing powerful new tools for land management.http://www.mdpi.com/1424-8220/16/11/1948StarDot camerasPhenoCam networkpinyon and junipersagebrush steppesemi-arid meadowscamera-based repeat digital photography |
| spellingShingle | Keirith A. Snyder Bryce L. Wehan Gianluca Filippa Justin L. Huntington Tamzen K. Stringham Devon K. Snyder Extracting Plant Phenology Metrics in a Great Basin Watershed: Methods and Considerations for Quantifying Phenophases in a Cold Desert Sensors StarDot cameras PhenoCam network pinyon and juniper sagebrush steppe semi-arid meadows camera-based repeat digital photography |
| title | Extracting Plant Phenology Metrics in a Great Basin Watershed: Methods and Considerations for Quantifying Phenophases in a Cold Desert |
| title_full | Extracting Plant Phenology Metrics in a Great Basin Watershed: Methods and Considerations for Quantifying Phenophases in a Cold Desert |
| title_fullStr | Extracting Plant Phenology Metrics in a Great Basin Watershed: Methods and Considerations for Quantifying Phenophases in a Cold Desert |
| title_full_unstemmed | Extracting Plant Phenology Metrics in a Great Basin Watershed: Methods and Considerations for Quantifying Phenophases in a Cold Desert |
| title_short | Extracting Plant Phenology Metrics in a Great Basin Watershed: Methods and Considerations for Quantifying Phenophases in a Cold Desert |
| title_sort | extracting plant phenology metrics in a great basin watershed methods and considerations for quantifying phenophases in a cold desert |
| topic | StarDot cameras PhenoCam network pinyon and juniper sagebrush steppe semi-arid meadows camera-based repeat digital photography |
| url | http://www.mdpi.com/1424-8220/16/11/1948 |
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