Spectral Identification of Native and Non-native Plant Species

The patterns of species distributions determine the functioning of ecosystems across a wide range of temporal and spatial scales, from biogeochemical cycles and partitioning of the energy budget, to changes in biodiversity, habitat characteristics, and trophic structures. To predict functionality, it is important to know the composition of species and other habitat characteristics. Loss of native biodiversity combined with near ubiquitous species invasions, global impacts of human-altered ecosystems, and climate change have made this a critical environmental issue. With few exceptions, even high spatial resolution remote sensing imagery has not been sufficient to identify and map individual species. In the past decade, the development of environmental spectroscopy from field spectrometers and airborne imaging spectrometers, has had marked progress in developing methodologies to identify individual species, as evidenced by a growing literature of case studies. There is need to further develop understanding of species identification at more fundamental levels, especially development of new measurement methodologies and rules for detection and mapping. We explore issues related to species identification and scale using field and image spectroscopy examples of invasive species that represent several growth forms and environmental conditions.