Comparison of Satellite and Drone-Based Images at Two Spatial Scales to Evaluate Vegetation Regeneration after Post-Fire Treatments in a Mediterranean Forest

The evaluation of vegetation cover after post-fire treatments burned lands is important for forest managers to restore soil quality and plant biodiversity in ecosystems. Unfortunately, this may be time consuming expensive, requiring much fieldwork surveys. use remote sensing, which makes these activities quicker easier, have rarely been carried out the Mediterranean forests, subjected wildfire stabilization techniques. To fill gap, study evaluates feasibility satellite (using LANDSAT8 images) drone surveys evaluate changes composition two hillslope (log erosion barriers, LEBs, contour-felled log debris, CFDs) a Central Eastern Spain. Surveys by were able detect variability among unburned areas through Visible Atmospherically Resistant Index (VARI), but gave unrealistic results when effectiveness treatment must evaluated. images instead misleading land treatments, due lack correlation between VARI cover. spatial analysis has shown that: (i) restoration strategy landscape that prioritized steeper slopes was successful; (ii) growth, at least experimental conditions, played limited influence on surface since no significant increases terrain roughness detected treated areas.