Extraction of smooth cordgrass(spartina alterniflora)biomass and leaf area index parameters from high resolution imagery

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Abstract
High resolution (3 x 3 m) Calibrated Airborne Multispectral Scanner (CAMS) data of Murrells Inlet, S. C. were collected on August 2, 1997. Original CAMS data and various vegetation indices were correlated with in situ a) harvested total above‐ground biomass clippings, and b) leaf‐area‐index (LAI) measurements obtained using a ceptometer. The non‐intrusive in situ LAI measurements were found to be significantly correlated with in situ above‐ground biomass measurements, suggesting that future field sampling of biomass and LAI can be obtained using a ceptometer. Near‐infrared and middle‐infrared bands as well as several vegetation indices were highly correlated with in situ biomass and LAI measurements. The first biomass map of a tidal estuary in South Carolina was produced. The biomass map represents an important base line against which future biomass inventories may be compared.