An assessment of pans as landscape features in the north west province using remote sensing techniques.
Date
1995
Authors
Green, Jane Theaker
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
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Abstract
Pans are unique as wetlands in that they are shallow endorheic basins whicn display
marked fluctuations in water depth and duration. They are significant sites of local
ecological diversity and particularly, an essential habitat for aquatic avifauna. In a review
of pans as landscape features, pan morphology, initiation and propagation mechanisms and functioning as wetlands are discussed
The first step in building an inventory and classification of wetlands is the location of
sites. Satellite imagery is ideally suited to mapping broad level land cover and landuse. In
this study Landsat TM data and image processing techniques are employed to locate pans
of differing sizes, morphology and vegetation structure in a panfield,' in the North West
province.
With the Landsat TM data available for this study it was possible to determine the location
and type, the surface extent of pans, whether or not they contained vegetation and to what
extent across their surfaces, and whether they contained water. It was not possible with
the vintage of Landsat™ data used to determine the plant communities associated with
the pans from spectral signatures of the vegetation.
Description
A Research Report Submitted to the Faculty of Science,
University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg.
in partial fulfilment of the requirements
for the Degree of
Master of Science
in
Qualitative Conservation Biology
Keywords
Wetland ecology -- South Africa -- North West Province., Remote sensing -- South Africa -- North West Province., Wetlands -- Remote sensing.