Determining the number and distribution of Firmiana Danxiaensis, a rare and endangered plant species in Danxiashan, South China, using DEM data and UAV technology

3rd International Conference on Energy Engineering and Environmental Protection

能源学;生态环境科学

Ouyang, Jie^1 ; Luo, Xiaoying^2 ; Simoncon, Scott L.^3 ; Li, Guangxian^1 ; Chen, Zaixiong^4

Open University of Guangdong, Guangzhou, GUANGDONG

510091, China^1

College of Tourism and Geography, Shaoguan University, Shaoguan, Guangdong

512005, China^2

International Academic Center, Belgrade

110003, Serbia^3

Limited Company of Danxiashan Tourism Investment Management of Shaoguan City, Shaoguan, Guangdong

512300, China^4

关键词: Endangered plants;    Environmental variables;    Field works;    Location data;    Proof of concept;    Spatial analysis;    Surface contour;    Survival spaces;   

Others  :  https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/1755-1315/227/5/052005/pdf
DOI  :  10.1088/1755-1315/227/5/052005

学科分类：环境科学（综合）

来源: IOP

【 摘 要 】

Firmiana danxiaensis, a rare and endangered plant species in Danxiashan, South China, belongs to Sterculiaceae family. The central Danxiashan covering an area of 10.6 km2 was selected as a case study. The location data of F. danxiaensis was collected by field work, and the environmental variables (slope, aspect, and elevation) were generated from DEM data of 1m resolution, while their images were collected by unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) in revealing the relationships between the micro-landforms and their spatial distribution. Three spatial analysis modules of ArcGIS10.0, including the Raster Surface-Contour List, slope, and aspect functions were used to extract from the DEM data of 1m resolution which were superimposed on the remotely-sensed photo data and transferred onto maps for the purpose of visualizations. The visualized maps indicated that there were no more than 1000 F.danxiaensis in the case study area. They are mainly distributed along sheer Danxia cliffs, with slopes above 30 and elevation ranges from100-300m. Also these cliffs have with vertical joints or horizontal bedding, and some drought tolerant plants, such as Osteomeles subrotunda, Lycoris aurea, and Selaginella tamariscina were usually found nearby. The main conclusions are as follows: 1The special Danxia landforms provided the key survival space for F. danxiaensis which is a kind of drought tolerant plant, growing mainly along Danxia cliffs with joints or beddings of thin barren soils. 2 According to the rules discussed above, F. danxiaensis is presumably distributed outside of the case area with the similar sheer cliff micro-landform environments in Danxia landforms. 3 Our research here may provide a proof of concept that UAVs may provide a low cost and accurate method in fast conducting surveys of data.