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Estimating herbaceous aboveground biomass in Sahelian rangelands using structure from motion data collected on the ground and by UAV
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  • Simon Taugourdeau,
  • Antoine Diedhiou,
  • Marina Bossoukpe,
  • Cofélas Fassinou,
  • Ousmane Diatta,
  • Ange N'Goran,
  • Alain Audebert,
  • Ousmane Ndiaye,
  • Abdoul Aziz Diouf,
  • Torbern Tagesson,
  • Rasmus Fensholt,
  • Emile Faye
Simon Taugourdeau
UMR SELMET -CIRAD UNIV Montpellier INRA Supagro

Corresponding Author:[email protected]

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Antoine Diedhiou
UCAD
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Marina Bossoukpe
UCAD
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Cofélas Fassinou
UCAD
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Ousmane Diatta
ISRA
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Ange N'Goran
ISRA
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Alain Audebert
CIRAD Biological Systems Department
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Ousmane Ndiaye
ISRA
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Abdoul Aziz Diouf
Centre de suivi Ecologique
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Torbern Tagesson
Copenhagen University
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Rasmus Fensholt
Copenhagen University
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Emile Faye
CIRAD
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Abstract

1.Herbaceous aboveground biomass (HAB) is a key indicator of grassland vegetation and indirect estimation tools, such as remote sensing imagery, increase the potential for covering larger areas in a timely and cost-efficient way. Structure from motion (SfM) is an image analysis process that can create a 3D model from a set of images. 2: Computed from UAV and ground camera measurements, the SfM potential to estimate the herbaceous aboveground biomass in Sahelian rangelands was tested in this study. Both UAV and ground camera recordings were used at three different scales: temporal, landscape and national (across Senegal). All images were processed using PIX4D software and were used to extract vegetation indices and heights. 3: A random forest algorithm was used to estimate the HAB and the average estimation errors were around 150 g.m-² for fresh mass (20% relative error) and 60 g.m-² for dry mass (around 25% error). A comparison between different datasets revealed that the estimates based on camera data were slightly more accurate than those from UAV data. 4:It was also found that combining datasets across scales for the same type of tool (UAV or camera) could be a useful option for monitoring HAB in Sahelian rangelands or in other grassy ecosystem.
15 Dec 2021Submitted to Ecology and Evolution
16 Dec 2021Submission Checks Completed
16 Dec 2021Assigned to Editor
06 Jan 2022Reviewer(s) Assigned
28 Mar 2022Review(s) Completed, Editorial Evaluation Pending
28 Mar 2022Editorial Decision: Revise Minor
03 Apr 20221st Revision Received
04 Apr 2022Submission Checks Completed
04 Apr 2022Assigned to Editor
04 Apr 2022Review(s) Completed, Editorial Evaluation Pending
07 Apr 2022Editorial Decision: Accept
May 2022Published in Ecology and Evolution volume 12 issue 5. 10.1002/ece3.8867