Integrated model of application of remote sensing and field investigations for sanitary status assessment of forest stands in two reserves in West Balkan Range, Bulgaria

摘要

Over the last decades, massive forest decline has occurred in many countries because of prolonged periods of drought and anomalous climatic phenomena. Studies show that in most cases this is the result of a combination of unfavourable climatic conditions and impact of harmful biotic factors, mostly insect pests and fungal pathogens. The massiveness of these unfavourable phenomena, as well as the specificities of their occurrence and spatial distribution, including mountainous and difficult to access areas, require the application of flexible, high-tech methods of collecting and processing data and information, and in recent years, modern unmanned aerial platforms and systems. This article presents the used approach, the methodology for complex assessment and the results obtained in integrated application of the potential of modern unmanned aerial platforms and traditional entomological and phytopathological methods for field investigation of sanitary status of two protected areas in West Balkan Range in Bulgaria - Gornata koria Reserve and Chuprene Biosphere Reserve.