Utilization of a Drone as a Tool in Seagrass Surveys

ETE conducted a seagrass survey for a property on Marco Island as part of permitting through the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.  ETE utilized a drone for up-to-the-minute aerial photographs of the survey area.  The high resolution drone photos aid in mapping the extent of seagrass beds, especially when their resolution is compared to publicly available aerials such as those provided by the Collier County Property Appraiser.  Additionally, when mapping something ephemeral like seagrass, timely photographs are critical.  Most County aerial photographs are taken just once a year.  The image below shows the project area with a standard County aerial.

As a comparison, below is the same project area with a drone aerial that has been geo-referenced into ArcGIS:

And finally, below is the resulting seagrass mapping after fieldwork and aerial comparisons:

ETE strives to use the most advanced technology we can to assist us in saving our clients time and money.