DigitalRainforest – LIDAR analysis of the La Gamba rainforest

In recent years, the use of terrestrial laser scanners (TLS) and airborne laser scanning (ALS) to characterize forests has made considerable progress and can be used both to record individual trees and thus biomass and carbon stocks and to monitor changes (growth, turnover). In evergreen tropical forests, such evaluations face the challenge that it is not possible to measure in a leafless state, which limits the view of trunks and branches and thus makes it difficult to calculate trunk sizes. In 2024, LIDAR surveys were carried out in La Gamba, Costa Rica, in primary, secondary forests and reforestation areas with planted trees using modern TLS and ALS systems. These data are to be analyzed as part of the project. First, individual TLS scans must be linked and the trees segmented, then these results will be checked with direct measurements of the trees on site and, as far as possible, the allometric model used for biomass calculation will be improved.