Fearscapes: Mapping Functional Properties of Cover for Prey with Terrestrial LiDAR

Olsoy, Peter J.; Forbey, Jennifer S.; Rachlow, Janet L.; Nobler, Jordan D.; Glenn, Nancy F.; Shipley, Lisa A.

doi:10.1093/biosci/biu189

Cited by 48 publications

(69 citation statements)

References 38 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…This is done by calculating viewsheds from multiple hypothetical viewpoints and adding them up to create a “heat map” where each cell gives the number of overlapping viewsheds. Because this analysis can be performed for all locations in the area of interest, it provides a superior alternative for the conventional photograph‐based visibility measures (Olsoy et al., ) that are routinely used in behavioural ecology.…”

Section: Opportunities For Viewshed Ecologymentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

A call for viewshed ecology: Advancing our understanding of the ecology of information through viewshed analysis

2017

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

There has been rapid increase of interest in the role that information acquisition plays in ecological process and in shaping life histories and their evolution. Compared to auditory and olfactory cues, the range at which visual cues are likely to be informative to animals is particularly sensitive to the spatial structure of the environment. However, quantification of and accounting for availability of visual information in fundamental and applied ecological research remains extremely limited. We argue that a comprehensive understanding of animal behaviour in a spatial context would greatly benefit from objective quantification of the area an animal can potentially obtain visual information from and therefore draw broad attention to viewshed analysis. This analysis identifies all cells of a gridded surface that are connected by lines‐of‐sight to a viewpoint, hence, providing information on how much of the environment surrounding a location can be seen. Although heavily used in non‐ecological disciplines including civil planning and archaeology, viewshed analysis has seldom been applied in an ecological context. Here, we highlight the opportunity to make use of viewshed approaches in conjunction with three‐dimensional remote sensing data and data from animal tracking to make major progress in understanding how visual information influences animal spatial behaviour, ecology and evolution.

show abstract

Section: Opportunities For Viewshed Ecologymentioning

confidence: 99%

“…() to model viewsheds both from lion kill and resting sites (Figure ), while TLS was used by Olsoy et al. () for mapping “fearscapes” (i.e. spatial explicit representation of predation risk), thereby demonstrating the potential of the cumulative viewshed approach (Figure b).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A call for viewshed ecology: Advancing our understanding of the ecology of information through viewshed analysis

2017

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…During winter, the height and structure of shrubs above the snow surface is reduced, which likely diminishes concealment (Olsoy et al. ). However, snow also can provide additional cover because pygmy rabbits readily create and use subnivean tunnels (Katzner and Parker ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Habitat selection differs across hierarchical behaviors: selection of patches and intensity of patch use

et al. 2017

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Abstract. When animals select habitats, they integrate a suite of behaviors that are influenced by multiple competing resource requirements. Resources that influence decisions about habitat use are likely to differ across spatial scales and hierarchical behaviors. At coarser scales, animals are expected to select resources that are critical to fitness, and at finer scales, to intensively use resources that enhance fitness. Our goal was to contrast habitat selection at two hierarchical behavioral levels (patch selection and intensity of patch use) to test hypotheses about how resources shape habitat use. We applied a two-stage hurdle model to quantify both initial selection and intensity of use of resource patches by a burrowing herbivore, the pygmy rabbit (Brachylagus idahoensis). We expected security from predation to influence initial selection of patches, and forage availability to influence intensity of use of selected patches. We monitored locations of adults fitted with radio-collars during winter and summer. We measured vegetation, burrow characteristics, and concealment cover within patches that were used and unused by rabbits, and we quantified burrow densities surrounding patches in a GIS. Selection of used patches from available patches was largely influenced by security resources (presence and proximity of burrows, shrub height, and woody ground cover) during both seasons. Intensity of patch use was also influenced by forage availability and, consequently, differed between seasons. During winter, sagebrush is the primary forage, and greater sagebrush canopy within a patch was associated with increased intensity of use. During summer, rabbits more intensively used patches with greater availability of herbaceous forage. Elucidating how animals make choices about habitats across a diversity of spatial and temporal scales will continue to increase our understanding of the factors that govern distribution of populations and movements of individuals. By extending these concepts to hierarchical behaviors, we can enhance insights into the processes that shape the patterns of habitat use we observe.

show abstract

“…We therefore scanned each mound from four locations to achieve full coverage of the patch following the methods of Olsoy et al. (). TLS scans were co‐registered together using four reflective targets per mound that were georeferenced with the same TopCon Hiper V receiver as the UAS ground control points.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Unmanned aerial systems measure structural habitat features for wildlife across multiple scales

et al. 2017

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Assessing habitat quality is a primary goal of ecologists. However, evaluating habitat features that relate strongly to habitat quality at fine‐scale resolutions across broad‐scale extents is challenging. Unmanned aerial systems (UAS) provide an avenue for bridging the gap between relatively high spatial resolution, low spatial extent field‐based habitat quality measurements and lower spatial resolution, higher spatial extent satellite‐based remote sensing. Our goal in this study was to evaluate the potential for UAS structure from motion (SfM) to estimate several dimensions of habitat quality that provide potential security from predators, and forage for pygmy rabbits (Brachylagus idahoensis) in a sagebrush steppe environment. At the plant and patch scales, we compared UAS‐derived estimates of vegetation height, volume (estimate of food availability) and canopy cover to estimates from ground‐based terrestrial laser scanning (TLS) and field‐based measurements. Then, we mapped habitat features across two sagebrush landscapes in Idaho, USA, using point clouds derived from UAS SfM. At the individual plant scale, the UAS‐derived estimates matched those from TLS for height (R2 = 0.85), volume (R2 = 0.94) and canopy cover (R2 = 0.68). However, there was less agreement with field‐based measurements of height (R2 = 0.67), volume (R2 = 0.31) and canopy cover (R2 = 0.29). At the patch scale, UAS‐derived estimates provided a better fit to field‐based measurements (R2 = 0.51–0.75) than at the plant scale. Landscape‐scale maps created from UAS were able to distinguish structural heterogeneity between key patch types. Our work demonstrates that UAS was able to accurately estimate habitat heterogeneity for a key terrestrial vertebrate at multiple spatial scales. Given that many of the vegetation metrics we focus on are important for a wide variety of species, our work illustrates a general remote sensing approach for mapping and monitoring fine‐resolution habitat quality across broad landscapes for use in studies of animal ecology, conservation and land management.

show abstract

Fearscapes: Mapping Functional Properties of Cover for Prey with Terrestrial LiDAR

Cited by 48 publications

References 38 publications

A call for viewshed ecology: Advancing our understanding of the ecology of information through viewshed analysis

A call for viewshed ecology: Advancing our understanding of the ecology of information through viewshed analysis

Habitat selection differs across hierarchical behaviors: selection of patches and intensity of patch use

Unmanned aerial systems measure structural habitat features for wildlife across multiple scales

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About