Date of Award

2007

Degree Name

Physical Science

College

College of Science

Type of Degree

M.S.

Document Type

Thesis

First Advisor

Ralph E. Oberly

Second Advisor

James O. Brumfield

Third Advisor

Anita Walz

Abstract

There is a need for extensive surveys of living organisms at a global scale; digital data exchange and storage is an essential part of such studies. Biodiversity inventory of fungi, which play an essential role in the health of the mountainous conifer forests of a developing country – Kyrgyz Republic, was linked to the vegetation classification produced from the high-resolution satellite imagery. Terra ASTER and SRTM90 imagery was used as a base map for the ecosystem modeling of the species and habitat distribution and for the three-dimensional representation, especially valuable for the mountainous landscapes of the Ala Archa National Park. Image processing techniques with ER Mapper and ArcGIS/ArcInfo using ASTER bands and band ratios (NDVI, Brovey transform and 3/1, 4/3, 10/1) allowed distinguishing between vegetation community types and their complexes: mixed conifer and deciduous forests, dwarf juniper forests, cushion plants, shrublands, alpine grasslands, steppes, sagebrush semi-deserts, and complexes of grasslands and conifers.

Subject(s)

Vegetation mapping - Kyrgyzstan - Kyrgyz Republic National Park.

Kyrgyzstan.

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