UAV-derived data for mapping change on a swidden agriculture plot: preliminary results from a pilot study. Issue 8 (19th May 2017)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Cummings, Anthony R.; Karale, Yogita; Cummings, Garvin R.; Hamer, Esan; Moses, Persaud; Norman, Zacharias; Captain, Victor
• Is Part Of: International journal of remote sensing. Volume 38:Issue 8/10(2017)
• Page Start: 2066
• Page End: 2082
• Publication Date: 2017-05-19
• Subjects: Remote sensing -- Periodicals; Télédétection -- Périodiques; 621.3678
• DOI: 10.1080/01431161.2017.1295487
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0143-1161

Abstract

ABSTRACT: Swidden agriculture, or the continuing agricultural system in which clearings are cropped for shorter periods than they are fallowed, landscapes have been described as 'difficult-to-map' because they host a high variety of land-cover types. Consequently, satellite-borne remotely sensed data have not proven overwhelmingly successful in detecting and measuring change within these landscapes. We utilize data derived from an optical sensor carried on-board an unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) to measure the change on a swidden agriculture plot over a 4 month period in Guyana. UAVs were built with indigenous farmers who were trained in their operation to collect data over the swidden plot. A two-class classification was developed to quantify the change in both cultivated and naturally occurring vegetation. We found that non-vegetation surfaces rapidly decreased over the 4 months, declining from 79.42% in June to 69.69% in September. Vegetation recolonization of the swidden crop was particularly the cassava crop planted by the Makushi farmer. While our analysis was completed over a single swidden plot, our work demonstrated that UAVs could play a role in mapping swidden landscapes and change the perception that they are difficult to map. Local people involvement was critical to mapping their landscapes.