Abstract
Using MODIS Data for Cheatgrass (Bromus tectorum) Identification and Mapping Track: Remote Sensing Imagery Author(s): Christopher McGinty, R Ramsey, John Lowry Cheatgrass (Bromus tectorum) is a wide ranging invasive weed in the Intermountain West. This invasive grass encroaches on native shrub and shrub-steppe environments, providing fuel for fire, out competing native plants post fire, and increasing fire return intervals. The conversion of native shrublands to Cheatgrass is a significant problem in the Great Basin region of the United States. MODIS 16-day composite data from 2000 to 2004 has been integrated into a database to model current distributions of Cheatgrass across the Great Basin. Field observations consisting of approximately 15,000 individual sites recording Cheatgrass percent ground cover (from absence to dominance) were compared against MODIS temporal NDVI data. Using a Computer Aided Regression Tree, general linear models and ArcGIS 9 we estimated Cheatgrass cover for this region. A systematic accuracy assessment is underway. Christopher McGinty Utah State University 3807 West 2200 South Wellsville , UT 84339 US Phone: 435-770-0642 E-mail: chris@gis.usu.edu R Ramsey Utah State Univeristy Forestry, Range, and Wildlife Utah State University UMC 5230 Logan , UT 84322 US Phone: 435-797-3783 E-mail: doug.ramsey@usu.edu John Lowry Utah State University RS/GIS Lab Utah State University UMC 5275 Logan , UT 84322 US Phone: 435-797-0653 E-mail: jlowry@gis.usu.edu |
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