Patterns of Primary Production & Ecological Drought in Yellowstone
Thoma DP, Munson SM, Rodman AW, Renkin R, Anderson HM, Wacker SD. 2019. Patterns of Primary Production & Ecological Drought in Yellowstone. Yellowstone Science. 27(1):34-39
Monitoring primary production and predicting future vegetation changes are needed to provide a comprehensive view of park health and anticipate future ecosystem changes (Crabtree et al. 2009, Nemani et al. 2009). Although an important indicator of ecosystem condition, primary production can be time and resource-intensive to monitor in wildland settings using traditional ground-based methods such as clipping and weighing vegetation biomass. Fortunately, ground-based methods can be complemented and enhanced by monitoring primary production with satellite imagery. Measurements of solar radiation reflectance in visible and near infra-red wavelengths can indicate primary production at frequent weekly intervals from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectrometer (MODIS) on satellites operated by National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). The Greater Yellowstone Inventory and Monitoring Network (GRYN) staff uses this information to track changes in primary production across Yellowstone over time.
- Type
- Journal Article
- Authors
- Thoma, David; Munson, Seth; Rodman, Ann; Renkin, Roy; Anderson, Heidi; Wacker, Stephanie
- Units
- GRTE , GRYN , YELL