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the globe program www.globe.gov muc field guide a key to land cover classification

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the globe program is a hands-on science and education program that unites students teachers and scientists from around the world in study and research about the dynamics of earth s environment hundreds of thousands of globe students in over 100 countries have reported data from millions of measurements in the areas of atmosphere/climate hydrology soils land cover/biology and phenology globe is implemented through a worldwide network of primary middle and secondary schools under the guidance of trained teachers globe students · take environmental measurements at or near their schools · create maps and graphs to analyze globe data sets and · report their data through the internet to the globe data archive · collaborate with scientists and other globe students around the world the globe program global learning and observations to benefit the environment www.globe.gov help@globe.gov these global data sets are freely available via the internet to the world-wide science community and to schools for student inquiry scientific research student-scientist partnerships and worldwide school-to-school collaborations age-appropriate environmental science educational materials have been developed by scientists and educators as a resource for globe teachers globe is managed in the united states as an interagency program of the national oceanic and atmospheric administration the national aeronautics and space administration the national science foundation the environmental protection agency and the u.s departments of education and state internationally globe is implemented through bilateral agreements between the u.s government and governments of partner nations for more information on globe contact the globe help desk at 1-800858-9947 or send email to help@globe.gov

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table of contents introduction ii key factors that affect vegetation iv how to use the muc field guide iii begin 1 muc 0 closed forest 7 muc 1 woodland 31 muc 2 shrubland or thicket 41 muc 3 dwarf-shrubland or dwarf-thicket 50 muc 4 herbaceous vegetation 61 muc 5 barren land 96 muc 6 wetland 99 muc 7 open water 101 muc 8 cultivated land 103 muc 9 urban 107 muc system table 109 muc level 1 at a glance 116 i muc introduction

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muc stands for modified unesco classification it is a land cover classification system developed by the team of researchers at the university of new hampshire as part of the land cover investigation of the globe program as the name implies the muc system is a modified version of the global land cover system developed by unesco 1973 it is a land cover classification system which follows international standards and ecological terminology for the identification of specific land cover classes what is muc what is muc in globe muc data are used to validate remotely sensed data muc is designed to be used anywhere in the world by using a standard international classification system all the globe data may be compiled into a single regional or global land cover data set unesco 1973 international classification and mapping of vegetation series 6 ecology and conservation paris france united nations educational scientific and cultural organization 32p ii muc introduction

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this guide is designed to lead you through the muc levels from the most general level 1 to the most detailed the most detailed will be either level 2 3 or 4 depending on the particular land cover class at each level you will be either asked one or more questions about the site or given a list of options from which you select the best description of your site your selection or response to a question usually either yes or no will direct you to the next question until you finally reach the most specific muc level for your site when you reach the most detailed level you will be told `done how to to use the mucfield guide how use the muc field guide every class within each level has a unique identifier or numerical code your most detailed classification will be identified by a string of these numbers in this field guide the definition from the muc system glossary of terms is given for each muc level the questions described above and these definitions are given on the left side of the page along the right side of the page there may be definitions of words used in defining the muc class as well as some notes to help you decide how to make a selection drawings are interspersed throughout the guide to help you better understand the types of vegetation and the rules used in the muc system a table showing all the muc classes is included at the end of this guide some muc definitions include specific examples of places or plant species these are only examples other places may have this classification also and a site may fit a given classification even if the example species are not present you may wish to consult a local expert for examples specific to your area iii muc introduction

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often when using the muc system you need to know in which climatic zone the site is located because of the tilt of earth s axis and the resulting unequal distribution of sunlight and temperature earth can be divided into general global climate zones as shown in figure 1 the exact boundaries of the zones however vary because climate is also affected by other factors such as proximity to mountains and oceans keykey factors thataffectvegetation ­ latitude factors that affect vegetation latitude tropical geographically the area between the tropic of cancer 23°27 n and the tropic of capricorn 23°27 s which includes tropical montane and alpine zones climatically the tropics are described as being where it almost never goes below freezing in the temperate zone locations near the water are considered tropical if the mean temperature for the coldest month of the year is above 18°c generally tropical regions are characterized by high mean temperatures small annual variation in temperature and abundant rainfall throughout the year although mountainous areas within the tropics are more variable the duration of the cool season increases with distance from the equator and annual rainfall decreases subtropical areas within tropical regions with variable seasonal temperature and moisture regimes climatically seasonal variation is marked by dry and wet seasons rather than cold and hot seasons some of these regions are subject to temperatures below 0°c but rarely have freezing periods longer than 24 hours in addition to polar temperate and tropical zones shown in figure 1 muc uses the terms `subtropical and `subpolar so when classifying your land cover site know where you are in the globe and use the following definitions to help you choose the correct muc class temperate temperate zones show significant seasonal temperature changes and can be broken down as follows warm temperate mild or no winter and extremely wet especially in summer cool temperate cold short winters or a winter free of frost and very cool summers near the ocean e.g central european or coastal northeastern usa arid temperate large temperature contrasts between summer and winter and little precipitation boreal or cold temperate cool wet summers and cold winters lasting more than six months mediterranean wet winters with rain rather than snow and dry summers subpolar transitional between the cold temperate zone and the polar zone polar in polar climates the mean temperature of the warmest month is below 10°c and there is low precipitation distributed over the entire year there is a short wet nightless summer and a very long cold dark winter generally the climate is too cold to support the growth of trees geographically the regions poleward of the arctic and antarctic circles iv muc introduction

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figure 1 v muc introduction

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changes in elevation can affect the environment as much as changes in latitude average annual temperature falls approximately 1°c for every 150 meter increase in elevation and in terms of the length of the growing season every 300 meter increase in elevation is roughly equivalent to moving toward the nearer pole by 400-500 km roughly four to five degrees of latitude mountain tops can be thought of as climatic islands where in the northern hemisphere northern species extend their ranges southward onto mountains where conditions resemble those of more northern latitudes in addition elevation affects precipitation mountain chains can cause moist air to rise and precipitate out almost all of its moisture when this air reaches the other side of the mountain chain it is dry and a rain shadow is created deserts and semiarid regions are found in such rain shadows key factors that affectvegetation ­ altitude key factors that affect vegetation altitude muc uses the terms `lowland `submontane `montane `subalpine and `alpine figure 2 and the following definitions will help you choose the correct muc class lowland an area of land that is low in relation to the surrounding country submontane located at the base of a mountain or mountain range montane of growing in or inhabiting mountain areas subalpine of designating or growing or living in mountainous regions just below the timberline alpine living or growing on mountains above the timberline note it may be necessary to consult local resources to determine the specific classification vegetation will vary depending on both the latitude and the altitude vi muc introduction

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alpine subalpine montane submontane lowland figure 2 vii muc introduction

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viii muc introduction

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a is the site developed begin if yes go to developed below if no go to natural page 2 which of the following two choices cultivated land or urban best describes your site note you must first decide whether your site is developed or natural a natural land cover site is any area that has an absence of current human manipulation this includes closed forest woodland shrubland or thicket dwarf-shrubland or dwarfthicket herbaceous vegetation wetland barren land or open water a developed land cover site is any area that is currently manipulated for example mowed groomed irrigated harvested penned livestock and fertilized by humans this includes urban and cultivated land agricultural fields athletic fields golf courses etc sometimes when selecting a land cover type there may be `gray areas in which choosing between different classifications will seem difficult use your best judgement when a problem occurs developed the ground is covered by greater than 60 non-native cultivated species e.g agricultural crops fruit trees cultivated short grasses and lawns and usually can be distinguished by the regular geometric patterns created by the lawns and fields cultivated land if yes go to muc 8 page 103 areas developed for residential commercial industrial or transportation uses must be greater that 40 urban land cover urban if yes go to muc 9 page 107 1 muc begin

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a is your site a wetland natural if yes go to muc 6 page 99 if yes go to trees page 3 b during the growing season is more than 40 of the site covered by the canopy of trees that are at least 5 meters tall if no go to b below if no go to c below note wetlands include many types of vegetation adapted to soils that are periodically or constantly saturated during the growing season there must be at least 40 vegetative cover some seasonally flooded grassland sites are classified in muc grasslands rather than wetlands note when using the muc system it is important to make sure that the trees are at least 5 meters tall young or dwarf trees less than 5 meters tall are classified as shrubs a h c do shrubs cover more than 40 of the ground if yes go to shrubs page 4 if no go to d page 5 2 muc begin

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which of the following two choices closed forest or woodland best describes your site trees are the crowns of the trees greater than 5 meters tall interlocking closed forest note the primar y difference between closed forest and woodland is whether more than 50 of the branches in the tree canopy are interlocking see pictures below describing interlocking branches if yes go to muc 0 page 7 are the crowns of the trees greater than 5 meters tall not interlocking woodland if yes go to muc 1 page 31 interlocking not interlocking 3 muc begin looking up from the base of the trees looking up from the base of the trees

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which of the following two choices shrubland or dwarf shrubland best describes your site shrubs note the primary difference between these two categories is the shrub height the shrub canopy is composed of matted clumped or clustered woody plants 0.5 to 5 meters tall shrubland if yes go to muc 2 page 41 shrubs rarely exceed 50 cm in height sometimes called heaths or heathlike formations dwarf shrubland if yes go to muc 3 page 50 5m 4 muc begin

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d which of the following three choices herbaceous vegetation barren land or open water best describes your site dominated by herbaceous growth of two major types graminoids and forbs total ground coverage must be greater than 60 herbaceous vegetation herbaceous vegetation forbs are broad-leaved herbaceous plants such as clover trifolium sunflowers helianthus ferns and milkweeds asclepias graminoids include all herbaceous grasses and grass-like plants such as sedges carex rushes juncus and cattails typha herbaceous pertaining to or characteristic of an herb as distinguished from a woody plant vascular plant rooted in the ground with foliage that dies back annually the meristem stem growth tip is located just above or below the ground if yes go to muc 4 page 61 herbaceous vegetation land with less than 40 vegetative cover barren land has a limited ability to support life and has thin soil barren land if yes go to muc 5 page 96 lakes ponds rivers and oceans the surface of the land is continually submerged by water greater than 2 meters deep and at least one hectare in size or continually submerged in an actively flowing channel or subtidal zone water should cover greater than 60 of the area open water 5 muc begin if yes go to muc 7 page 101

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