Antarctic moss stress assessment based on chlorophyll content and leaf density retrieved from imaging spectroscopy data
The health of several East Antarctic moss-beds is declining as liquid water availability is reduced due to recent environmental changes. Consequently, a noninvasive and spatially explicit method is needed to assess the vigour of mosses spread throughout rocky Antarctic landscapes. Here, we explore t...
| Published in: | New Phytologist |
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| Main Authors: | , , , |
| Format: | Article in Journal/Newspaper |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Blackwell Publishing Ltd
2015
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1111/nph.13524 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26083501 http://ecite.utas.edu.au/101280 |
| Summary: | The health of several East Antarctic moss-beds is declining as liquid water availability is reduced due to recent environmental changes. Consequently, a noninvasive and spatially explicit method is needed to assess the vigour of mosses spread throughout rocky Antarctic landscapes. Here, we explore the possibility of using near-distance imaging spectroscopy for spatial assessment of moss-bed health. Turf chlorophyll a and b , water content and leaf density were selected as quantitative stress indicators. Reflectance of three dominant Antarctic mosses Bryum pseudotriquetrum, Ceratodon purpureus and Schistidium antarctici was measured during a drought-stress and recovery laboratory experiment and also with an imaging spectrometer outdoors on water-deficient (stressed) and well-watered (unstressed) moss test sites. The stress-indicating moss traits were derived from visible and near infrared turf reflectance using a nonlinear support vector regression. Laboratory estimates of chlorophyll content and leaf density were achieved with the lowest systematic/unsystematic root mean square errors of 38.0/235.2 nmol g −1 DW and 0.8/1.6 leaves mm −1 , respectively. Subsequent combination of these indicators retrieved from field hyperspectral images produced small-scale maps indicating relative moss vigour. Once applied and validated on remotely sensed airborne spectral images, this methodology could provide quantitative maps suitable for long-term monitoring of Antarctic moss-bed health. |
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