ABSTRACT
Field surveys, though highly accurate, require extensive resources and may be impractical for large-scale inventories. US Fish and Wildlife Service National Wetlands Inventory (NWI) mapping, based on conventional aerial photography and manual photo interpretation techniques, has proven to be relatively reliable, and the information is available in digital format for many areas of the country. Systeme Probatoire d’Observaton de la Terre (SPOT) satellite imagery was used to map wetland areas in a small watershed in northern Michigan. Results were compared to NWI and Michigan Resource Inventory System wetland maps to determine if the wetland areas within the watershed could be more refined through remote sensing. SPOT is a series of French satellites SPOT 1 and SPOT 2 that use three electro-optical sensors covering the green, red, and near infrared bands. SPOT 2 imagery is processed daily and is constantly being acquired over the United States.
