Satellite-based barrier island habitat maps, Caminada Headland, Louisiana, 2012-2019

This product is a satellite-based habitat map time series from 2012 to 2019 for the Caminada Headland reach of the Louisiana Gulf shoreline to facilitate monitoring of the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF) Caminada Headland Beach and Dune Restoration Incr2 project area (BA-0143). The project restored 489 acres of beach and dune habitat along more than seven miles of Caminada Headland in Jefferson and Lafourche Parishes in Louisiana through the direct placement of about 5.4 million cubic yards of sandy substrate from Ship Shoal. For more information on this restoration project, see the project page on Louisiana Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority’s (CPRA) Coastal Information Management System (https://cims.coastal.la.gov/outreach/projects/ProjectView?projID=BA-0143). The time period for these maps spans before, during, and after the restoration project. These maps were produced using a random forest model that classified cover types (that is, bare, herbaceous vegetation, woody vegetation, and water) based on spectral indices from Sentinel-2 and Landsat 8 imagery. These products complement habitat maps that were developed from orthoimagery and elevation data using a detailed 15-class habitat scheme developed by the CPRA’s Barrier Island Comprehensive Monitoring (BICM) Program. The BICM Program uses both historical data and contemporary data collections to assess and monitor changes to barrier islands. Habitat map products are one type of BICM dataset. For more information about the BICM Program, see Kindinger and others (2013); for more information about recent BICM habitat mapping, see Enwright and others (2020). These habitat maps were utilized with ecological data in an analysis of avian habitat occupancy and use/function for several focal species pre- and post-restoration activity. The results of this analysis will help land managers evaluate how restoration and subsequent natural ecological processes impact bird species of conservation concern, and target restoration activities that enhance island sustainability and preserve avian habitat availability.