Description: <DIV STYLE="text-align:Left;"><DIV><DIV><P><SPAN STYLE="font-size:12pt">The Marin County lifeform map is a 22-class land use and land cover map of Marin County, reflecting the state of the landscape in summer, 2018. The lifeform map is a draft data product and will be finalized when the fine scale vegetation map is released in 2021. The lifeform map is a foundational input to the fine scale vegetation map. The fine scale vegetation map will have significantly more floristic detail than the lifeform map; woody vegetation communities in the fine scale map will be mapped to the alliance level of the National Vegetation Classification. For more information, consult the full product datasheet (</SPAN><A href="https://vegmap.press:443/lifeform_datasheet" target="_blank" STYLE="text-decoration:underline;"><SPAN STYLE="font-size:12pt">https://vegmap.press/lifeform_datasheet</SPAN></A><SPAN STYLE="font-size:12pt">).</SPAN></P><P><SPAN STYLE="font-size:12pt">The draft lifeform map has 22 classes. The map includes 24,873 polygons.</SPAN></P><P><SPAN STYLE="font-size:12pt">More detailed class definitions, as well as a dichotomous key for the lifeform classes, can be found starting on page 7 or the draft Marin Vegetation Map Key (</SPAN><A href="https://vegmap.press:443/mapping_key" STYLE="text-decoration:underline;"><SPAN STYLE="font-size:12pt">https://vegmap.press/mapping_key</SPAN></A><SPAN STYLE="font-size:12pt">). </SPAN></P><P STYLE="margin:0 0 14 0;"><SPAN STYLE="font-size:12pt">The Marin County lifeform map was created using "expert systems" rulesets developed in Trimble Ecognition. These rulesets combine automated image segmentation (stand delineation) with object- based image classification techniques in a process called “Object Based Image Analysis (OBIA)”. In contrast with the machine learning approaches that will be used to make Marin’s fine scale vegetation map, expert systems rulesets are developed heuristically based on the knowledge of experienced image analysts. Key input datasets for the lifeform ruleset include: 6-inch, 4-band orthoimagery (2018), a LiDAR derived Canopy Height Model (2019), and other LiDAR derived landscape metrics. </SPAN></P><P STYLE="margin:0 0 14 0;"><SPAN STYLE="font-size:12pt">After it is produced using Ecognition, the preliminary lifeform map is manually edited by expert photointerpreters. Manual editing fixes errors where the automated methods produced incorrect results. Edits are made to correct two types of errors: 1) unsatisfactory polygon (stand) delineations and 2) incorrect polygon labels.</SPAN></P><P><SPAN /></P><P><SPAN /></P></DIV></DIV></DIV>
Copyright Text: Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy