Mapping Tree Species Diversity

The current UN report on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services depicts an alarming and shocking picture of the Earth. With accelerating rates of species extinction, our environment is declining globally at an unprecedented rate. Transformative economic and societal change is necessary, and will involve far-reaching alterations in perceptions and actions at both local and global levels. To cope with the pace of global change, a rapid increase in knowledge regarding species numbers, compositions, and conditions is required, as well as species interactions and environments. Remote sensing provides the only feasible way to cost-effectively and repeatedly measure and monitor these changes. Today's satellite, aircraft, and UAV instruments provide a wide range of observational capabilities in terms of spatial, temporal, and spectral resolutions. Machine learning approaches and computational capacities are improving quickly, offering great potential for enhanced data analysis, including "big data", and the development of powerful monitoring systems. This reprint focuses on the remote assessment of tree species diversity using various sensor modalities and platforms. It provides an overview of state-of-the art remote sensing solutions and highlights their high potential for distinguishing tree species.