Construction of an Orthophoto-Draped 3D Model and Classification of Intertidal Habitats Using UAV Imagery in the Galapagos Archipelago
Andrée De Cock,
Ruth Vandeputte,
Stijn Bruneel,
Laure De Cock,
Xingzhen Liu,
Rafael Bermúdez,
Nina Vanhaeren,
Bart De Wit,
Daniel Ochoa,
Philippe De Maeyer,
Sidharta Gautama,
Peter L. M. Goethals
Affiliations
Andrée De Cock
Department of Animal Sciences and Aquatic Ecology, Faculty of Bioscience Engineering, Ghent University, Coupure Links 653, 9000 Ghent, Belgium
Ruth Vandeputte
Department of Animal Sciences and Aquatic Ecology, Faculty of Bioscience Engineering, Ghent University, Coupure Links 653, 9000 Ghent, Belgium
Stijn Bruneel
Department of Animal Sciences and Aquatic Ecology, Faculty of Bioscience Engineering, Ghent University, Coupure Links 653, 9000 Ghent, Belgium
Laure De Cock
Department of Geography, Faculty of Sciences, Ghent University, 9000 Ghent, Belgium
Xingzhen Liu
Department of Animal Sciences and Aquatic Ecology, Faculty of Bioscience Engineering, Ghent University, Coupure Links 653, 9000 Ghent, Belgium
Rafael Bermúdez
Facultad de Ingeniería Marítima y Ciencias del Mar, Escuela Superior Politécnica del Litoral ESPOL, Guayaquil ECO90211, Ecuador
Nina Vanhaeren
Department of Geography, Faculty of Sciences, Ghent University, 9000 Ghent, Belgium
Bart De Wit
Department of Geography, Faculty of Sciences, Ghent University, 9000 Ghent, Belgium
Daniel Ochoa
Facultad de Ingeniería Eléctrica y Computación, Escuela Superior Politécnica del Litoral (ESPOL,) Campus Gustavo Galindo Km 30.5 Vía Perimetral, Guayaquil 090101, Ecuador
Philippe De Maeyer
Department of Geography, Faculty of Sciences, Ghent University, 9000 Ghent, Belgium
Sidharta Gautama
Department of Industrial Systems Engineering and Product Design, Ghent University, 9052 Ghent, Belgium
Peter L. M. Goethals
Department of Animal Sciences and Aquatic Ecology, Faculty of Bioscience Engineering, Ghent University, Coupure Links 653, 9000 Ghent, Belgium
Worldwide, an increasing number of marine islands suffer from various pressures on the environment, driven by climate change and increasing land demands. The Galapagos Archipelago is one of the most iconic group of islands, yet population growth and tourism have resulted in a rising need for efficient environmental monitoring of its fragile ecosystems, such as the intertidal zone which harbors diverse and unique fauna. The purpose of this study was to investigate the image classification opportunities for these intertidal habitats using Uncrewed Aerial Vehicle (UAV) imagery. The data for this research were collected in Puerto Ayora on Santa Cruz in August 2017, the most urbanized island of the Galapagos. An orthophoto, a digital elevation model (DEM), and an orthophoto-draped 3D model of the intertidal zone were obtained using image registration software. Based on the orthophoto, an initial classification of the intertidal zone was performed using the spectral angle mapper algorithm. A habitat map with four classes (water, sand, rock, and vegetation) was created with an overall classification accuracy of 77%, indicating the suitability of UAV high resolution aerial imagery for the classification of intertidal habitats. The developed method could be applied to map and monitor other coastal regions and islands systems.
