Biological Projects

Landcover Mapping Projects

Togiak Refuge is in the process of developing a landcover map from satellite data (similar to the image at left). This project is in cooperation with a statewide effort by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and Ducks Unlimited (DU). This statewide earth cover mapping project will provide an inventory of Alaska's land base, which can be used for regional management of land and wildlife. Earth cover databases allow researchers and managers to define and map crucial areas for wildlife, perform analyses of related habitats, plot wildlife movements, and provide baseline data to which wildlife and sociological data can be related.

The objective of this project is to develop a baseline earth cover inventory which can be used to develop plant community and habitat maps. Field verification of the satellite imagery occurred in the summers of 2001 and 2003 in an attempt to assess, measure, and document the vegetation variation within the project area. The project is currently in the correction and evaluation phase. This data will be used to develop a generalized habitat and vegetation map for Togiak Refuge.