ALBERT

Description: Remote sensing is being widely used in the fields of resource management, planning, and wildlife habitat evaluation. Canopy cover-type mapping has been done in most of the bioclimatic zones of India and widely abroad, using aerial photointerpretation techniques. In the present study an attempt has been made to develop a methodology for mapping understorey vegetation in part of Kanha National Park, using 1:10,000-scale black-and-white aerial photographs.The Park, one of the best for Tiger (Felis tigris) visibility and observation of other large carnivores and herbivores, has been mapped, with subdivision into 11 vegetation cover-classes and four density-classes, using aerial photographs, and each class has been visited in the field for understorey information concerning different physiographic units. Each category of canopy-cover was sampled in the field, and tree base-cover per hectare has been estimated.Vertical profiles have also been drawn in the main vegetation classes in order to understand the occurrence of understorey vegetation. It was found that a physiographic analysis coupled with canopy-cover type and density, with appropriate sampling in the individual vegetation strata, have together proved indicative of understorey vegetationtype. When the relationship between understorey vegetation and canopy-cover type is established, one can directly depict understorey limits spatially in conjunction with the main vegetation cover. Such an approach of mapping understorey vegetation using aerial photographs could be of immense value for wildlife habitat evaluation and park management.