UAV Inventory of the Last Remaining Dragon Tree Forest on Earth
The result's identifiers
Result code in IS VaVaI
<a href="https://www.isvavai.cz/riv?ss=detail&h=RIV%2F62156489%3A43410%2F23%3A43923536" target="_blank" >RIV/62156489:43410/23:43923536 - isvavai.cz</a>
Alternative codes found
RIV/61989592:15310/23:73622250
Result on the web
<a href="https://doi.org/10.3390/f14040766" target="_blank" >https://doi.org/10.3390/f14040766</a>
DOI - Digital Object Identifier
<a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/f14040766" target="_blank" >10.3390/f14040766</a>
Alternative languages
Result language
angličtina
Original language name
UAV Inventory of the Last Remaining Dragon Tree Forest on Earth
Original language description
The last remaining Dragon Tree Forest on Earth survives on a small plateau (Roqeb di Firmihin) in Socotra Island (Yemen). The Socotran Dragon's Blood Tree (Dracaena cinnabari Balf. f.) is endemic to the Socotra Archipelago UNESCO World Heritage Site. Being a culturally important and endangered tree species, its conservation is a priority. Despite this, a complete inventory of the Firmihin Dracaena forest (14.9 km2) has never been attempted before. We applied the use of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) for the first time in conserving the Socotran Dragon's Blood Tree. A pair of UAVs (small drones) were used during field surveys in 2021 to spatially describe individual tree positions, tree density, mortality, and the forest age structure. Aerial images were processed into a single orthophoto image of high spatial resolution (8 cm/pixel) used for detailed analysis. We applied image-enhancement techniques, used object-based classification, and corrected every entry manually during the inventory process. In total 35,542 individual living trees and 2123 uprooted trees were inventoried. The mean age of the forest, based on crown age (derived from crown size) was estimated at an average of ca. 300 years (291.5 years) with some individuals older than 500 years. Our analysis reveals that the trajectory of recent cyclones and the average direction of fallen trees in Firmihin are correlated, suggesting that intensified winds (as a result of global warming) catalyze the decline of the overmature forest. Our study illustrates the use of UAVs in collecting crucial data for the conservation and threat assessment of endangered tree species in Socotra, and regular drone inventories could be applied (e.g., after future cyclone events or landslides) to better evaluate the status of these vulnerable island ecosystems.
Czech name
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Czech description
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Classification
Type
J<sub>imp</sub> - Article in a specialist periodical, which is included in the Web of Science database
CEP classification
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OECD FORD branch
40102 - Forestry
Result continuities
Project
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Continuities
R - Projekt Ramcoveho programu EK
Others
Publication year
2023
Confidentiality
S - Úplné a pravdivé údaje o projektu nepodléhají ochraně podle zvláštních právních předpisů
Data specific for result type
Name of the periodical
Forests
ISSN
1999-4907
e-ISSN
1999-4907
Volume of the periodical
14
Issue of the periodical within the volume
4
Country of publishing house
CH - SWITZERLAND
Number of pages
17
Pages from-to
766
UT code for WoS article
000979517900001
EID of the result in the Scopus database
2-s2.0-85156130673