Estimation of Liana Infestation above canopy in logged over forest in Gunung Basor using unmanned aerial vehicle

The infestation of lianas in tropical forests and specifically in trees canopy cover have prompted a number of method in removing it which including cutting and ground survey that consumes a lot of time and work force. This limitations of traditional method have resulted in the use of unmanned aerial vehicle to capture the images of forest in a 1-hectare plot to assess forest canopies from above by using UAV that was equipped with 35mm lens and built with 84° field of view. The lianas were identified from the visual interpretation on the images taken and the orthomap produced. The visual interpretation from the images was supported by the ground survey to verify the validity and strength of using UAV as a new approach in assessing liana infestation from vantage point. Estimation of liana infestation from the visual interpretation and ground survey have derived two sets of data namely liana percentage cover and crown occupancy index. They were statistically analyzed and shown a medium correlation and significance from both datasets which produce the values of 0.03 and 0.00003 respectively . This approach of using UAV to assess liana infestation have showed that it has become a more reliable method and cost effective than traditional ways. It promotes a larger area coverage and flexibility in movement as well as accuracy which surpasses the human ability to complete the process and assessment in a much shorter time and less labour use.