Abstract

Depressional Wetland Mapping in the Prairie Pothole Region
Track: Water Resources
Authors: Qiusheng Wu, Charles Lane

In this study, we propose a contour tree method for identifying depressional wetlands and quantifying their hierarchical order using high-resolution LiDAR data and a method that simulates the hydrologic filling-spilling-merging process. Wetland metrics, such as position, wetland area, storage volume, etc. can be computed for each individual depression and depression complex. The proposed method was successfully applied to map depressional wetlands in the Prairie Pothole Region of North Dakota.