SPECTRAL REFLECTANCE OF LIVING CORALS IN THE XISHA ISLANDS, CHINA

摘要

Spectral reflectance of corals is a key parameter to coral reef remote sensing. In the Xisha Isl-ands(also known as the Paracel Islands), We collected in situ spectral reflectances of 24 coral species. Spectral characters analysis was carried out based on reflectance spectra, cluster analysis and derivative spectroscopy. The shape of spectra is primarily determined by pigment absorption and fluorescence contributions. Derivative spectra showed particular differences between species at wavelengths where several pigments absorb. Intra-species variability of spectral features was not significant relative to interspecies variability. However, it is currently unlikely that living corals can be discriminated at a species level based on their reflectance spectra, due to complex biological taxonomy. Our spectral libraries are an important resource which can be used in remote sensing and in photosynthetic studies.