Convergence in key month of phenology-based mangrove species classification using sentinel-2 imagery data: insights from structural and physiological indices

Accurate classification of mangrove species is essential for sustainable conservation and precise carbon sink estimation. Integrating phenological information holds promise for enhancing species distinguishability and improving classification accuracy. However, further research is needed to clarify...

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Main Authors: Yangcan Bao, Xiaofeng Lin, Mingming Jia, Zhongyong Xiao, Cuiping Wang, Jiangfu Liao, Yinghui Zhang
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Taylor & Francis Group 2025-08-01
Series:International Journal of Digital Earth
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Online Access:https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/10.1080/17538947.2025.2528651
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author Yangcan Bao
Xiaofeng Lin
Mingming Jia
Zhongyong Xiao
Cuiping Wang
Jiangfu Liao
Yinghui Zhang
author_facet Yangcan Bao
Xiaofeng Lin
Mingming Jia
Zhongyong Xiao
Cuiping Wang
Jiangfu Liao
Yinghui Zhang
author_sort Yangcan Bao
collection DOAJ
description Accurate classification of mangrove species is essential for sustainable conservation and precise carbon sink estimation. Integrating phenological information holds promise for enhancing species distinguishability and improving classification accuracy. However, further research is needed to clarify the roles of vegetation indices (VIs) and to identify the key phenological months for mangrove classification. In this study, a random forest algorithm (RF) and Sentinel-2 time series data were applied using the Google Earth Engine platform. Results showed that structural and physiological VIs significantly improved classification accuracy by 7–43% compared to the initial accuracy. Quantification of the variable importance using RF revealed that the structural and physiological VIs exhibited dynamic key month variations in spring and summer, but they maintained temporal stability during autumn and winter. Moreover, classification based on key phenological months reduced data redundancy and achieved higher accuracy than using all monthly VIs. The highest overall accuracy of the structural VIs achieved a stable accuracy (88 ± 4%), while the physiological VIs exhibited two-stage differentiation, with some achieving accuracies of greater than 91% and others with accuracies of less than 70%. The results of this study highlight the key phenological patterns and provide guidance for VI selection in future research.
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institution Kabale University
issn 1753-8947
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language English
publishDate 2025-08-01
publisher Taylor & Francis Group
record_format Article
series International Journal of Digital Earth
spelling doaj-art-ba558dbead9e4f54ba176ae84cd7ea2e2025-08-25T11:28:35ZengTaylor & Francis GroupInternational Journal of Digital Earth1753-89471753-89552025-08-0118110.1080/17538947.2025.2528651Convergence in key month of phenology-based mangrove species classification using sentinel-2 imagery data: insights from structural and physiological indicesYangcan Bao0Xiaofeng Lin1Mingming Jia2Zhongyong Xiao3Cuiping Wang4Jiangfu Liao5Yinghui Zhang6College of Harbour and Coastal Engineering, Jimei University, Xiamen, People’s Republic of ChinaCollege of Harbour and Coastal Engineering, Jimei University, Xiamen, People’s Republic of ChinaState Key Laboratory of Black Soils Conservation and Utilization, Northeast Institute of Geography and Agroecology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Changchun, People’s Republic of ChinaCollege of Harbour and Coastal Engineering, Jimei University, Xiamen, People’s Republic of ChinaCollege of Harbour and Coastal Engineering, Jimei University, Xiamen, People’s Republic of ChinaComputer Engineering College, Jimei University, Xiamen, People’s Republic of ChinaMNR Key Laboratory for Geo-Environmental Monitoring of Great Bay Area & Guangdong Key Laboratory of Urban Informatics & Shenzhen Key Laboratory of Spatial Smart Sensing and Services, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen, People’s Republic of ChinaAccurate classification of mangrove species is essential for sustainable conservation and precise carbon sink estimation. Integrating phenological information holds promise for enhancing species distinguishability and improving classification accuracy. However, further research is needed to clarify the roles of vegetation indices (VIs) and to identify the key phenological months for mangrove classification. In this study, a random forest algorithm (RF) and Sentinel-2 time series data were applied using the Google Earth Engine platform. Results showed that structural and physiological VIs significantly improved classification accuracy by 7–43% compared to the initial accuracy. Quantification of the variable importance using RF revealed that the structural and physiological VIs exhibited dynamic key month variations in spring and summer, but they maintained temporal stability during autumn and winter. Moreover, classification based on key phenological months reduced data redundancy and achieved higher accuracy than using all monthly VIs. The highest overall accuracy of the structural VIs achieved a stable accuracy (88 ± 4%), while the physiological VIs exhibited two-stage differentiation, with some achieving accuracies of greater than 91% and others with accuracies of less than 70%. The results of this study highlight the key phenological patterns and provide guidance for VI selection in future research.https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/10.1080/17538947.2025.2528651Mangrove species mappingphenologystructural vegetation indexphysiological vegetation indexkey months
spellingShingle Yangcan Bao
Xiaofeng Lin
Mingming Jia
Zhongyong Xiao
Cuiping Wang
Jiangfu Liao
Yinghui Zhang
Convergence in key month of phenology-based mangrove species classification using sentinel-2 imagery data: insights from structural and physiological indices
International Journal of Digital Earth
Mangrove species mapping
phenology
structural vegetation index
physiological vegetation index
key months
title Convergence in key month of phenology-based mangrove species classification using sentinel-2 imagery data: insights from structural and physiological indices
title_full Convergence in key month of phenology-based mangrove species classification using sentinel-2 imagery data: insights from structural and physiological indices
title_fullStr Convergence in key month of phenology-based mangrove species classification using sentinel-2 imagery data: insights from structural and physiological indices
title_full_unstemmed Convergence in key month of phenology-based mangrove species classification using sentinel-2 imagery data: insights from structural and physiological indices
title_short Convergence in key month of phenology-based mangrove species classification using sentinel-2 imagery data: insights from structural and physiological indices
title_sort convergence in key month of phenology based mangrove species classification using sentinel 2 imagery data insights from structural and physiological indices
topic Mangrove species mapping
phenology
structural vegetation index
physiological vegetation index
key months
url https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/10.1080/17538947.2025.2528651
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