This research project deals with biocrusts, thin layers of living organisms like cyanobacteria,
mosses, and lichens that form on the soil surface in dry areas all over the world. While biocrusts
fulfill important ecological and climate functions - preventing erosion, improving soil health,
capturing CO2, regulating water cycling in dry environments - we know little about their spatial
extent and response to global change, in part because we cannot use many of our existing
multispectral remote sensing tools for assessing biocrust communities to the same degree we can
for vascular plants. This project integrates data from the hyperspectral Earth Surface Mineral Dust
Source Investigation (EMIT) sensor and other complementary satellite observation records to better
map and understand biocrust community composition and functional diversity across drylands.
The objectives of the project are to:
1. Develop a biocrust hyperspectral library across multiple spatial scales;
2. Quantify critical biocrust functional traits through new measurements at core research sites;
3. Map biocrust community composition and function at local, regional and global scales
This project is in partnership with the UofA School of Natural Resources and the U.S. Geological Survey.
Project Point of Contact: Stefanie Hermann (stef@arizona.edu)