Introduction Discrimination of vegetation and anthropic classes using biophysical parameters on the Tapajós National Forest, Amazon Material and Methods Results and Discussion Conclusions and Next Steps References Sandra Furlan Nogueira, Janice Freitas Leivas, Gustavo Bayma-Silva, Luciana Spinelli Araujo , Leila Lisboa, Lucieta Guerreiro Martorano One of the goals of the Project Role Of Biodiversity In Climate Change MitigatioN in Latin America (ROBIN) is to quantify the role played by biodiversity in terrestrial ecosystems in South and Mesoamerica in mitigating climate change. In ROBIN’s context, landscape cohesion, i.e. the proportion of intact remnant habitats according to Galindo-Leal et al. (2005), would be an indicator for biodiversity, whereas changes to natural habitats causing them to decrease in extension and integrity indicate ongoing biodiversity decrease (BRASIL, 2000). Land-use changes, such as converting original ecosystems to other uses, e.g. agriculture, husbandry and urban spaces, would therefore have direct effects on biodiversity. These land-use changes also have implications on climate changes. In a forest, the evapotranspiration rate is much higher than in any crop or pasture, and changes in soil use cause relevant reductions in the water vapor flow to the atmosphere, thus altering the water cycle (IPAM, 2014). These climate changes would impact remnant vegetation and, again, biodiversity. According to the Brazilian conservation unit classes (BRASIL, 2014), a national forest’s (Flona) characteristic is having its forest resources used for multiple and sustainable uses and for scientific research, with emphasis on methods for the sustainable exploration of native forests. In Flonas, the plant cover is predominantly composed of native species, and the permissible uses are restricted. Thus, despite the historical anthropic pressure at its surroundings, Flona Tapajós’ plant cover is still preserved, guaranteeing the integrity of the natural landscape, and consequently the maintenance of its biodiversity. Outside its boundaries, however, the forest fragments at different succession stages (Espirito-Santo, 2003) show changes in structure and floristic diversity (Santos et al., 2003). These differences between the preserved forest within the Flona and the forest fragment under direct anthropic pressure can reflect in the responses obtained from remote sensing products, which have continuously been employed in the monitoring of land use and land cover. Thus, our objective was to analyze the behavior of biophysical parameters (absorbed photosynthetically active radiation, albedo, evapotranspiration and surface temperature) derived from Landsat/TM images to characterize the gradient of land use intensity considering the different forest formations and agricultural systems at Flona Tapajós and its surroundings. The analyses are linked to ROBIN under "W.P.1.2.: Interactions between biodiversity and measures of climate change mitigation over time", and aim to provide information to support issues related to past changes in indicators of biodiversity resulting from land-use change. The study area comprises Flona Tapajós and a 30-km buffer around it. We used four Landsat- 5 Thematic Mapper (TM) images, orbits 227/228 and points 62/63, from 1989 (August 22 and July 28) and 2009 (July 3, July 12, July 28, and October 23) for the analysis, and applied the SAFER (Simple Algorithm For Evapotranspiration Retrieving) model to the images in order to obtain the absorbed photosynthetically active radiation, albedo, evapotranspiration and surface temperatures estimates for the study area. SAFER's processing steps are described in Teixeira et al. (2013). In the sampling for the analysis of the remote sensing products we considered the different types of land use and land cover. The samples from anthropic areas were classified as pasture and as agricultural crop areas both in 1989 and 2009. Vegetation classes' samples were also selected by means of image analysis and considering IBGE's vegetation map and their location – within or outside the Flona. We performed Kruskal-Wallis ANOVA statistical analyses using data from the applied model and classes samples. The first results enabled clearly distinguishing forest formations from anthropic uses. However, we could not preliminarily identify differences in behavior between the plants within the Flona and those outside it. db: Lowland Ombrophilous Dense Forest; ds: Submontane Ombrophilous Dense Forest; sp: Park Savanna; ac: Crop; ac/straw: Crop Post- harvest; ap: Pasture N: number of samples; RFAa: Absorbed photosynthetically active radiation (W m -2 ); ALB: Albedo (%); ET: Evapotranspiration (mm d -1 ); ST: Surface temperature (K) Table 1. Number of samples, means and standard deviation of estimated parameters on Tapajós FLONA in 1989 and 2009 years. Mean Mean±SE Mean±SD db_in db_out ds_in ds_out sp_out ac/straw_out ap_out 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100 110 Absorbed photosynthetically active radiation (W m -2 ) Mean Mean±SE Mean±SD db_in db_out ds_in ds_out sp_out ac/straw_out ap_out 0,15 0,16 0,17 0,18 0,19 0,20 0,21 0,22 0,23 Albedo (%) Mean Mean±SE Mean±SD db_in db_out ds_in ds_out sp_out ac/straw_out ap_out -1 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 Evapotranspiration (mm) Mean Mean±SE Mean±SD db_in db_out ds_in ds_out sp_out ac/straw_out ap_out 303 304 305 306 307 308 309 Soil Temperature (K) Mean Mean±SE Mean±SD db_in db_out ds_in ds_out sp_out ac_out ac/straw_out ap_out 0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100 Absorbed photosynthetically active radiation (W m-2) Mean Mean±SE Mean±SD db_in db_out ds_in ds_out sp_out ac_out ac/straw_out ap_out 0,14 0,15 0,16 0,17 0,18 0,19 0,20 Albedo (%) Mean Mean±SE Mean±SD db_in db_out ds_in ds_out sp_out ac_out ac/straw_out ap_out -1 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 Evapotranspiration (mm) Mean Mean±SE Mean±SD db_in db_out ds_in ds_out sp_out ac_out ac/straw_out ap_out 304 305 306 307 308 309 310 311 312 313 Soil Temperature (K) 1989 2009 RFAa: db_in = db_out ds_in = ds_out sp ≠ all ac/straw = ap RFAa is 32.6% lower in anthropic areas. ALB: db_in ≠ db_out ds_in = ds_out sp ≠ all ac/straw = ap ALB is 13.3 % higher in anthropic areas. ET: db_in = db_out ds_in = ds_out sp ≠ all ac/straw ≠ all ap ≠ all ET is 42 % higher in forest formations. ST: db_in = db_out ds_in ≠ ds_out sp = ds_out = ap ac/straw = ds_in ST is 0.6 % lower in open forest. RFAa: db_in = db_out ds_in ≠ ds_out sp = ds_out = ap ac/straw ≠ all ac ≠ all RFAa is 10 % lower in ds_out ALB: db_in = db_out ds_in = ds_out sp = ap ac/straw ≠ all ac ≠ all ET: db_in = db_out ds_in = ds_out sp = ap ac/straw ≠ all ac ≠ all ET in ac is much higher than literature… Must be recalculated. ST: db_in = db_out ds_in = ds_out sp = ap ac/straw ≠ all ac ≠ all Flona Tapajós, the pilot area for the ROBIN Project in Brazil, was created in 1974, and is the national forest which has the highest amount of scientific researches in the country. Its area of approximately 5,000 km 2 encompasses preserved humid tropical forest and open-canopy humid tropical forest, and houses traditional communities and areas of sustainable forest management (less than 5% of its total area). BRASIL. Casa Civil. Decreto nº 9.985, de 18 de julho de 2000. D Regulamenta o art. 225, § 1o, incisos I, II, III e VII da Constituição Federal, institui o Sistema Nacional de Unidades de Conservação da Natureza e dá outras providências. Available at: <http://www.planalto.gov.br/ccivil_03/leis/l9985.htm>. Accessed on: 11 set. 2014. Espirito-Santo, F. Caracterização e mapeamento da vegetação da região da Floresta Nacional do Tapajós através de dados óticos, radar e de inventários florestais. 2003. Disponível em: <http://www.ipef.br/servicos/teses/arquivos/delbonespirito-santo,f.pdf>. Acesso em: 11 set. 2014. Galindo - Leal, C.; Câmara, I.G.; Benson, P.J. Perspectivas para a Mata Atlântica. In: Galindo - Leal, C.; Câmara, I.G. (ed.). Mata Atlântica : Biodiversidade, Ameaças e Perspectivas. São Paulo: Fundação SOS Mata Atlântica - Belo Horizonte: Conservação Internacional, 2005. Instituto ambiental de Pesquisa da Amazônia (IPAM). ABC do Clima. Available at: <:http://www.ipam.org.br/saiba-mais/abc/mudancaspergunta/Como-o- desmatamento-contribui-para-as-mudancas-climaticas-/28/18>. Accessed on: 11 set. 2014. Santos, J. R.; Freitas, C. C.; Araujo, L. S.; Dutra, L. V.; Mura, J. C.; Gama, F. F.; Soler, L. S.; Sant'Anna, S. J. S. Airborne P-band SAR applied to the aboveground biomass studies in the Brazilian tropical rainforest, Remote Sensing of Environment, Volume 87, Issue 4, 15 November 2003, Pages 482-493, ISSN 0034- 4257, http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.rse.2002.12.001. Teixeira, A. H. De C.; Scherer-Warren, M.; Hernandez, F. B. T.; Andrade, R. G.; Leivas, J. F. Large-Scale Water Productivity Assessments with MODIS Images in a Changing Semi-Arid Environment: A Brazilian Case Study. Remote Sensing, v. 5, p. 5783-5804, 2013. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/rs5115783 Our next steps will be to analyze images from four dates, 1989, 1999, 2009 and 2013, and distribute the vegetation samples considering distance gradients towards anthropic areas. The new analyses will also encompass samples from the Flona's forest management area, in order to identify the characteristics of this activity in comparison to those of other land uses. July 1989 N July 2009 N Land Use Mean SD Mean SD Mean SD Mean SD Land Use Mean SD Mean SD Mean SD Mean SD db_in 144 94.33 4.49 0.161 0.004 4.60 0.56 304.57 0.85 db_in 144 61.47 7.62 0.157 0.004 3.14 0.52 306.68 0.42 db_out 144 93.85 4.18 0.158 0.003 4.64 0.53 304.35 0.55 db_out 144 65.22 5.83 0.155 0.005 3.28 0.54 306.61 0.34 ds_in 144 96.20 3.65 0.160 0.004 4.74 0.47 305.63 0.27 ds_in 144 52.60 3.62 0.156 0.004 2.78 0.35 306.99 0.19 ds_out 144 96.35 4.31 0.161 0.005 4.73 0.53 306.11 0.43 ds_out 144 47.32 5.60 0.157 0.006 2.59 0.41 307.12 0.25 sp_out 144 41.02 20.46 0.172 0.010 0.78 0.97 306.22 1.55 sp_out 144 42.62 13.68 0.170 0.014 1.34 0.81 308.00 1.17 ac/straw_out 65 63.92 25.26 0.189 0.036 2.99 1.92 305.97 2.33 ac_out 34 82.61 4.52 0.183 0.006 5.20 0.52 305.45 0.29 ap_out 127 64.30 13.59 0.180 0.024 2.44 1.04 306.69 1.52 ac/strow_out 112 18.34 10.62 0.191 0.006 0.33 0.40 310.72 1.39 ap_out 144 41.92 10.44 0.176 0.005 1.87 0.71 308.03 0.82 RFAa ALB ET ST RFAa ALB ET ST View publication stats View publication stats