About the Project

Uncrewed aerial systems (UAS), also known as drones, offer a lower cost, less invasive alternative to traditional ground-based monitoring for emergent vegetation that also provides higher resolution images than satellite-based imagery. “Drone the SWMP,” a 2020 NERRS Science Collaborative catalyst project, used UAS to monitor wetlands in six reserves, then assessed and developed a standardized protocol that includes equipment operation, image processing, and image analysis. This project built on the work of Drone the SWMP by transferring their protocol for monitoring coastal wetlands and evaluating its efficacy in assessing and monitoring emergent vegetation across more reserves representing a wider range of biogeographic regions.

About this Resource

An introduction to "Drone the NERRS: Assessing the Efficacy of a Drone-based Coastal Wetland Monitoring Protocol Across Five Biogeographic Regions" a science transfer project funded in 2023 by the NERRS Science Collaborative.