Geospatial Sciences and Technology
Geospatial Sciences and Technology
The Geospatial Sciences and Technology (GST) program focuses its efforts on providing technical and data development assistance to UMESC and its program partners. The GST teams specialize in; using geospatial (location referenced) and remote sensing technology to collect, create, and analyze geospatial data; and creating decision support tools that make geospatial data and technology more accessible to resource managers and researchers.
Filter Total Items: 44
Hydroacoustic mapping of habitat for threatened and endangered native mussels in the Upper Mississippi River
Understanding the distribution of threatened and endangered freshwater mussels is needed to conserve and restore populations. Sampling for native freshwater mussels typically involves taking quadrat samples in soft substrates and counting the number of mussels in a defined area. However, this methodology is unsuitable for detecting populations of the Spectaclecase mussel ( Margaritifera monodonta...
Develop Orthophotos and Mosaics from systemic color infrared aerial photography of the Upper Mississippi River System from 1975, 1989, 1994, and 2000
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ Upper Mississippi River Restoration (UMRR) Program Long Term Resource Monitoring (LTRM) element is implemented by the U.S. Geological Survey, Upper Midwest Environmental Sciences Center (UMESC), in cooperation with the five Upper Mississippi River System (UMRS) states of Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota, Missouri, and Wisconsin. Color infrared aerial photography was...
Pre- and Post-Maintenance Aerial Imagery for Illinois River's Alton through Brandon Lock and Dams, 2019-2021
Most of the locks and dams on the Illinois River are scheduled for closure for repair during the summer of 2020. This project will use 4-band (natural color and color infrared) aerial imagery to document baseline aquatic vegetation and river conditions prior to the closures in the late summer of 2019, and once again in the later summer of 2021 after the locks are reopened.
2020 Systemic Land Cover/Land Use Aerial Imagery Acquisition, Image Interpretation, and Spatial Data Products for the Upper Mississippi River System
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Upper Mississippi River Restoration (UMRR) program, through its Long Term Resource Monitoring (UMRR-LTRM) element, is completing the 2020 decadal update of Land Cover/Land Use (LCU) for the entire Upper Mississippi River System (UMRS). Dissemination of the 2020 LCU database will provide a fourth systemic dataset to compare to the 1989, 2000, and 2010/11...
Feral hog survey over Jean Lafitte National Historical Park and Preserve using high-resolution thermal infrared imagery
The Jean Lafitte National Historical Park and Preserve (JELA) in southeastern Louisiana is being invaded by feral hogs ( Sus scrofa ) and in need a systemic survey to determine where and how many hogs exist within the park boundary. Feral hogs are able to reproduce and increase their range rapidly, they are highly destructive to streams, wetlands, native plants and farm fields, and can spread...
Aerial orthoimagery development of Emiquon and Spunky Bottoms Preserves on the Illinois River for the Nature Conservancy
The Illinois River's Emiquon and Spunky Bottoms Preserves are collaborative floodplain restoration projects involving The Nature Conservancy (TNC), The US Army Corps of Engineers, and the US Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), with restoration efforts guided by a team of over forty science advisers. Emiquon and Spunky Bottoms were historic wetlands prior to conversion to farmland. This project is...
Remote Sensing in support of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Migratory Bird Surveys Branch
The Upper Midwest Environmental Science Center and the USFWS Migratory Bird Surveys Branch continue to partner on remote sensing projects that document and describe our natural resources, including flight planning, image acquisition, and image processing support for both waterfowl and wildlife surveys and for vegetation mapping projects.
Deep Learning for Automated Detection and Classification of Waterfowl, Seabirds, and other Wildlife from Digital Aerial Imagery
The U.S. Geological Survey Upper Midwest Environmental Sciences Center is developing deep learning algorithms and tools for the automatic detection, enumeration, classification, and annotation of seabirds and other marine wildlife from digital aerial imagery — advancing cutting-edge research in collaboration with the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM), the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS...
Exploring Invasive Plant Detection with Small Unmanned Aircraft Systems and Sensors
Spatial maps showing locations of invasive plants equip land managers with a valuable tool. Properly acquired aerial imagery provides vegetation mappers or machine learning software an efficient venue to map invasive plants, in contrast to the effort required for an on-the-ground census of plants. Small Unmanned Aircraft Systems (sUAS) can yield quick acquisition of aerial imagery over localized...
Pilot project to acquire and process terrestrial lidar and multibeam bathymetry to determine feasibility as a tool for US Army Corps of Engineers Habitat Restoration Enhancement Project (HREP) embankment assessment - McGregor Island
This project is an adaptive management and monitoring plan that encompasses technical assistance to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers through University of Wisconsin – La Crosse (UW-L), U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Upper Midwest Water Science Center and the USGS -Upper Midwest Environmental Sciences Center (USGS -UMESC).
Region 3 US FWS Data Digitization
The U.S. Geological Survey – Upper Midwest Environmental Sciences center houses a state-of-the-art GIS lab that hires students through a cooperative agreement with the University of Wisconsin – La Crosse. The GIS lab provides technical and data management support for partners. Recently Region 3 of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) have required a large amount of data digitization and...
Forest Canopy Gap Dynamics: Quantifying Forest Gaps and Understanding Gap-level Forest Regeneration
Floodplain forest is a major and critical component of the Upper Mississippi River System (UMRS). The current and future condition of floodplain forest on the UMRS is receiving increased attention from managers as the forest appears to be declining and not regenerating. A primary concern is invasive reed canarygrass ( Phalaris arundinacea ), Dutch elm disease ( Ophiostoma ulmi and O. novo-ulmi )...