Drones

Antarctic plants can be important indicators of subtle changes in environmental conditions, including climate change. Traditional ground-based assessments of vegetation health are, however, not ideal in Antarctica, as they can destroy the vegetation and are physically demanding in the harsh weather conditions.Co-author Professor Sharon Robinson from UOW's School of Biological Sciences said the study found drone-based monitoring of vegetation health produced similar results to traditional techniques, but with much greater efficiency and with no damage to the vegetation. "Drones are a powerful tool for monitoring fragile Antarctic vegetation," Professor Robinson said. "They could be used to provide timely warnings about specific environmental stress events, as well as monitoring the longer-term impacts of climate change. "These methods could also be adapted to monitor the health of other small-stature, patchy plant communities, including in alpine or desert regions." The researchers found that drones equipped with sensors were able to detect vegetation health indicators more accurately than satellite imagery. Mosses are one of the key Antarctic vegetation types that need to be monitored. However, they tend to occur in patches among rocks, ice and soil, making it important that the imagery used to assess their health is as accurate and spatially detailed as possible.