Live Pine Tree Species Basal Area (2000 -2009) in the GCPO LCC (Loblolly, Longleaf, Shortleaf, Slash)

Live tree species basal area from 2000 - 2009 for loblolly pine (Pinus taeda), longleaf pine (Pinus palustris), shortleaf pine (Pinus echinata), and slash pine (Pinus elliottii) clipped to the Gulf Coastal Plains and Ozarks LCC geography.Data were derived from the USFS live tree species basal area of the contiguious United States (2000-2009) Wilson, Barry T.; Lister, Andrew J.; Riemann, Rachel I.; Griffith, Douglas M. 2013. Live tree species basal area of the contiguous United States (2000-2009). Newtown Square, PA: USDA Forest Service, Northern Research Station. Abstract from html metadata for USFS live tree species basal area of the contiguious United States (2000-2009).

This data product contains raster maps of live tree basal area for each tree species along with corresponding assessment data. An efficient approach for mapping multiple individual tree species over large spatial domains was used to develop these raster datasets. The method integrates vegetation phenology derived from MODIS imagery and raster data describing relevant environmental parameters with extensive field plot data of tree species basal area to create maps of tree species abundance and distribution at a 250-meter (m) pixel size for the contiguous United States . The approach uses the modeling techniques of k-nearest neighbors and canonical correspondence analysis, where model predictions are calculated using a weighting of nearest neighbors based on proximity in a feature space derived from the model. The approach also utilizes a stratification derived from the 2001 National Land-Cover Database tree canopy cover layer.