Mapping the distribution of coral reefs and associated sublittoral habitats in Pacific Panama: a comparison of optical satellite sensors and classification methodologies
- 23 October 2007
- journal article
- research article
- Published by Informa UK Limited in International Journal of Remote Sensing
- Vol. 28 (22), 5047-5070
- https://doi.org/10.1080/01431160701258062
Abstract
This research compared the ability of Landsat ETM+, Quickbird and three image classification methods for discriminating amongst coral reefs and associated habitats in Pacific Panama. Landsat ETM+ and Quickbird were able to discriminate coarse and intermediate habitat classes, but this was sensitive to classification method. Quickbird was significantly more accurate than Landsat (14% to 17%). Contextual editing was found to improve the user's accuracy of important habitats. The integration of object‐oriented classification with non‐spectral information in eCognition produced the most accurate results. This method allowed sufficiently accurate maps to be produced from Landsat, which was not possible using the maximum likelihood classifier. Object‐oriented classification was up to 24% more accurate than the maximum likelihood classifier for Landsat and up to 17% more accurate for Quickbird. The research indicates that classification methodology should be an important consideration in coral reef remote sensing. An object‐oriented approach to image classification shows potential for improving coral reef resource inventory.Keywords
This publication has 27 references indexed in Scilit:
- Distribution, diversity, and conservation of coral reefs and coral communities in the largest marine protected area of Pacific Panama (Coiba Island)Environmental Conservation, 2004
- Multi-site evaluation of IKONOS data for classification of tropical coral reef environmentsRemote Sensing of Environment, 2003
- Spectral reflectance of coral reef bottom-types worldwide and implications for coral reef remote sensingRemote Sensing of Environment, 2003
- Remote sensing of the coastal zone: An overview and priorities for future researchInternational Journal of Remote Sensing, 2003
- Coral reef habitat discrimination using multivariate spectral analysis and satellite remote sensingInternational Journal of Remote Sensing, 2003
- A fuzzy-possibilistic scheme of study for objects with indeterminate boundaries: application to French Polynesian reefscapesIEEE Transactions on Geoscience and Remote Sensing, 2000
- Development of a systematic classification scheme of marine habitats to facilitate regional management and mapping of Caribbean coral reefsBiological Conservation, 1999
- Spectral Discrimination of Healthy and Non-Healthy Corals Based on Cluster Analysis, Principal Components Analysis, and Derivative SpectroscopyRemote Sensing of Environment, 1998
- Benefits of water column correction and contextual editing for mapping coral reefsInternational Journal of Remote Sensing, 1998
- DISTRIBUTION OF CORAL REEFS IN THE PEARL ISLANDS (GULF OF PANAMA) IN RELATION TO THERMAL CONDITIONS1Limnology and Oceanography, 1973