Close-range remote sensing of aquatic macrophyte vegetation cover

Abstract

This study used ground-based hyperspectral radiometry to examine variations in visible and near-infrared spectral reflectance of spatterdock (Nuphar polysepalum Engelm.) as a function of vegetation cover. Sites were sampled in Swan Lake in Grand Teton National Park, Wyoming, using a 512-band spectroradiometer to measure reflectance over the range 326.5-1055.3nm (visible-nearinfrared) and simultaneous estimates of spatterdock cover. Linear correlations between spatterdock cover and spectral reflectance were statistically significant at the 0.05 significance level in two specific ranges of the spectrum: 518-607 nm; and 697-900nm. Predictability of spatterdock cover using spectral variables was best using an NDVI transformation of the data in a non-linear equation (r ² = 0.95).