Summary
This project will use finer spatial and spectral resolution hyperspectral imagery and data fusion to generate improved maps of:
a) alien tree invasions (based on AVIRIS-NG, LVIS and ALOS),
b) structural and spectral diversity (based on LVIS and AVIRIS-NG) at both local (alpha) and landscape (beta) scales, and
c) four important ecosystem functions: primary production and the temporal stability of primary production (based on MODIS and FluxSat), water-use efficiency (based on the ECOSTRESS algorithm and using AVIRIS-NG and HyTES), and fuel loading (based on LVIS).
Cover photo: invasive alien pines in the Fynbos Biome, Western Cape
Map
This Bioscape project will have four sites, demarcated by the blue polygons on the map.
Project overview
This project has two main objectives and three hypotheses which will be tested:
Objectives:
Objective 1) Map biological invasions, structural and spectral diversity, and ecosystem functioning using airborne and satellite imagery.
Objective 2) Test ecological hypotheses related to biodiversity, invasion, and ecosystem functioning
Hypotheses:
Hypothesis 1) Higher structural and spectral alpha-diversity decrease invasibility, after accounting for confounding effects of landscape-scale covariates.
Hypothesis 2) As alien tree invasions progress, they increase structural and spectral alpha-diversity, but decrease beta-diversity.
Hypothesis 3) Ecosystem functioning (net primary productivity and its temporal stability, water use efficiency, and fuel load) depends on both invasion status (H3A) and biodiversity (H3B).
Methods:
The team
The South African team is made up of:
Prof Tony Rebelo
Dr Alanna Rebelo (SA project lead)
Nicholas Coertze (MSc student)
The team from the USA includes:
Prof Peter Adler
Dr Ben Poulter
Dr Elisa Van Cleemput
Katharine Suding
Laura Dee
Niklaus Zimmerman