Journal Article

Mapping and Classification of Ecologically Sensitive Marine Habitats Using Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) Imagery and Object-Based Image Analysis (OBIA)

Bonifazi, Andrea, Ardizzone, Giandomenico, Gravina, Maria Flavia, Belluscio, Andrea, Ventura, Daniele

2018

Overview

Nowadays, emerging technologies, such as long-range transmitters, increasingly miniaturized components for positioning, and enhanced imaging sensors, have led to an upsurge in the availability of new ecological applications for remote sensing based on unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), sometimes referred to as “drones”. In fact, structure-from-motion (SfM) photogrammetry coupled with imagery acquired by UAVs offers a rapid and inexpensive tool to produce high-resolution orthomosaics, giving ecologists a new way for responsive, timely, and cost-effective monitoring of ecological processes. Here, we adopted a lightweight quadcopter as an aerial survey tool and object-based image analysis (OBIA) workflow to demonstrate the strength of such methods in producing very high spatial resolution maps of sensitive marine habitats. Therefore, three different coastal environments were mapped using the autonomous flight capability of a lightweight UAV equipped with a fully stabilized consumer-grade RGB digital camera. In particular we investigated a Posidonia oceanica seagrass meadow, a rocky coast with nurseries for juvenile fish, and two sandy areas showing biogenic reefs of Sabelleria alveolata. We adopted, for the first time, UAV-based raster thematic maps of these key coastal habitats, produced after OBIA classification, as a new method for fine-scale, low-cost, and time saving characterization of sensitive marine environments which may lead to a more effective and efficient monitoring and management of natural resources.

• Publisher: MDPI AG
• Subject: Accuracy / aerial mapping / Aerial photography / Aircraft / Aquaculture / Aquatic habitats / Autonomous underwater vehicles / Biodiversity / Classification / Coastal ecology / Coastal environments / Coral reefs / Digital cameras / Drone aircraft / Drone vehicles / Drones / Ecological effects / Ecological monitoring / Environmental protection / Grasses / Habitats / Image acquisition / Image analysis / Image classification / Image processing / Lightweight / mapping / marine coastal habitats / Marine ecology / Marine environment / Mediterranean Sea / Natural resource management / Natural resources / object-based image analysis (OBIA) / Offshore structures / Photogrammetry / Production methods / Remote sensing / Sensors / Spatial discrimination / Spatial resolution / structure from Motion (SfM) / Thematic mapping / Transmitters / unmanned aerial systems/vehicles (UAS/UAV) / Unmanned aerial vehicles / Weight reduction / Wildlife conservation