All global ecosystems, with the possible exception of Antarctica, are impacted by invasive species that are substantially changing their functional and structural integrity. Invasion of natural ecosystems represents a serious threat to global biodiversity. Factors attributed to the spread of these species include climate change, land use, land conversion, resource extraction, and habitat fragmentation, combined with international transport. Substantial economic costs are associated with these changes, from loss of agricultural production and increased wildfire frequency to loss of recreational potential. Costs in the United States alone are estimated to exceed $120 billion per year (Pimentel et al. 2005). Recent advances in imaging spectroscopy, a technique to measure a detailed spectrum for all pixels in the image have allowed mapping of individual species and plant communities based on their spectral characteristics. Underwood et al. (2003) used this data to map invasive species in native shrublands along the central coast of California at Vandenberg Air Force Base. Figure 9.7 shows the distribution of invasive species and native plant communities at 3-m pixel resolution for part of the base along the Pacific Coast shoreline. This information is being used by land managers to improve efficiencies in eradication and containment programs. Data of the quality required for mapping individual plant species must currently be acquired by airborne hyperspectral imagers. NASA’s suborbital sciences program has led to the development of this cutting-edge technology and has supported the research required to use it effectively, as shown in the figure.

FIGURE 9.7 Distribution of three invasive species—iceplant, jubata grass, and blue gum—in two native shrub ecosystems—coastal sage scrub and Burton Mesa chaparral—on the central coast of California. The map was produced from a mosaic of flightlines acquired from airborne NASA AVIRIS data, a 224-band imaging spectrometer measuring from the visible through the solar infrared (400-2,500 nm) and measured at a nominal 3-m pixel resolution. SOURCE: Underwood et al. (2006). Reprinted with kind permission of Springer Science and Business Media, copyright 2006.