Implementing Drone Mapping Along the US West Coast for Eelgrass Meadow Extent and Dynamics

Eelgrass acts as a natural habitat for a wide range of species and maintains many important ecosystem functions. However, many researchers along the U.S. west coast have noticed a recent decline in eelgrass populations and have begun researching the possible causes for this decline. One of those causes, eelgrass wasting disease, has been drawing the attention of researchers from multiple fields and universities, including the University of Central Florida. Funded by the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF), we utilize GIS and Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV) for remote sensing data collection and analysis that demonstrated important findings. This drone mapping fieldwork will be conducted annually to compare spatio-temporal changes in certain measured environmental factors, such as eelgrass abundance and related environmental factors. For the benefit of future GIS research into eelgrass, other research institutes in collaboration were taught proper drone flight protocols as well as GIS processing.