Rights statement: This is the peer reviewed version of the following article: Saatchi, S. , Mascaro, J. , Xu, L. , Keller, M. , Yang, Y. , Duffy, P. , Espírito‐Santo, F. , Baccini, A. , Chambers, J. and Schimel, D. (2015), Correspondence. Global Ecology and Biogeography, 24: 606-610. doi:10.1111/geb.12256 which has been published in final form at http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/geb.12256/abstract This article may be used for non-commercial purposes in accordance With Wiley Terms and Conditions for self-archiving.
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Research output: Contribution to Journal/Magazine › Letter › peer-review
Research output: Contribution to Journal/Magazine › Letter › peer-review
}
TY - JOUR
T1 - Seeing the forest beyond the trees
AU - Saatchi, Sassan
AU - Mascaro, Joseph
AU - Xu, Liang
AU - Keller, Michael
AU - Yang, Yan
AU - Duffy, Paul
AU - Espirito-Santo, Fernando D. B.
AU - Baccini, Alessandro
AU - Chambers, Jeffery
AU - Schimel, David
N1 - This is the peer reviewed version of the following article: Saatchi, S. , Mascaro, J. , Xu, L. , Keller, M. , Yang, Y. , Duffy, P. , Espírito‐Santo, F. , Baccini, A. , Chambers, J. and Schimel, D. (2015), Correspondence. Global Ecology and Biogeography, 24: 606-610. doi:10.1111/geb.12256 which has been published in final form at http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/geb.12256/abstract This article may be used for non-commercial purposes in accordance With Wiley Terms and Conditions for self-archiving.
PY - 2015/5
Y1 - 2015/5
N2 - In a recent paper (Mitchard etal. 2014, Global Ecology and Biogeography, 23, 935-946) a new map of forest biomass based on a geostatistical model of field data for the Amazon (and surrounding forests) was presented and contrasted with two earlier maps based on remote-sensing data Saatchi etal. (2011; RS1) and Baccini etal. (2012; RS2). Mitchard etal. concluded that both the earlier remote-sensing based maps were incorrect because they did not conform to Mitchard etal. interpretation of the field-based results. In making their case, however, they misrepresented the fundamental nature of primary field and remote-sensing data and committed critical errors in their assumptions about the accuracy of research plots, the interpolation methodology and the statistical analysis. By ignoring the large uncertainty associated with ground estimates of biomass and the significant under-sampling and spatial bias of research plots, Mitchard etal. reported erroneous trends and artificial patterns of biomass over Amazonia. Because of these misrepresentations and methodological flaws, we find their critique of the satellite-derived maps to be invalid.
AB - In a recent paper (Mitchard etal. 2014, Global Ecology and Biogeography, 23, 935-946) a new map of forest biomass based on a geostatistical model of field data for the Amazon (and surrounding forests) was presented and contrasted with two earlier maps based on remote-sensing data Saatchi etal. (2011; RS1) and Baccini etal. (2012; RS2). Mitchard etal. concluded that both the earlier remote-sensing based maps were incorrect because they did not conform to Mitchard etal. interpretation of the field-based results. In making their case, however, they misrepresented the fundamental nature of primary field and remote-sensing data and committed critical errors in their assumptions about the accuracy of research plots, the interpolation methodology and the statistical analysis. By ignoring the large uncertainty associated with ground estimates of biomass and the significant under-sampling and spatial bias of research plots, Mitchard etal. reported erroneous trends and artificial patterns of biomass over Amazonia. Because of these misrepresentations and methodological flaws, we find their critique of the satellite-derived maps to be invalid.
KW - Allometry
KW - biomass
KW - lidar
KW - remote sensing
KW - spatial modelling
KW - tree height
KW - tropical forests
KW - wood density
KW - ABOVEGROUND LIVE BIOMASS
KW - WOOD SPECIFIC-GRAVITY
KW - TROPICAL FOREST
KW - CARBON-DENSITY
KW - PATTERNS
KW - AMAZONIA
KW - STOCKS
KW - PANAMA
KW - BASIN
KW - LIDAR
U2 - 10.1111/geb.12256
DO - 10.1111/geb.12256
M3 - Letter
VL - 24
SP - 606
EP - 610
JO - Global Ecology and Biogeography
JF - Global Ecology and Biogeography
SN - 1466-822X
IS - 5
ER -