Fractional vegetation cover of East African wetlands observed on ground and from space

Abstract

Wetlands are important ecosystems providing numerous ecosystem services. They are of particular importance to communities in East Africa where agriculture is the most important economic sector and where food availability to households critical. During an intensive field campaign in the dry season of 2013 were Fractional Vegetation Cover (FVC) measurements, botanical vegetation cover and vegetation structure estimates acquired in three wetland test sites within the East African region. FVC cover data were collated in three strata: ground layer, midstorey and overstorey (woody vegetation greater than 2 m). Fractional cover estimates for the green and no-green vegetative fraction were calculated for Landsat MODIS imagery. These FVC data products were evaluated a) with FVC field data and b) relative to each other for their usability in the East African region. First results show some promise for further studies