Forest canopy photosynthesis and vegetation indices

Authors: Muraoka H., Noda H. M., Nagai S., Motohka T., Saitoh T. M., Nasahara K. N., Saigusa N.
Journal: J. Plant Ecol., 6 (5), 393-407
DOI: 10.1093/jpe/rts037
Abstract: Our in situ observation of leaf and canopy characteristics, which were analyzed by an ecosystem carbon cycling model, revealed that their phenological changes are responsible for seasonal and interannual variations in canopy photosynthesis. Significant correlations were found between the five VIs and canopy photosynthetic capacity over the seasons and years; four of the VIs showed hysteresis-type relationships and only CCI showed rather linear relationship. Among the VIs examined, we applied EVI–GPPmax relationship to EVI data obtained by Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer to estimate the temporal and spatial variation in GPPmax over central Japan. Our findings would improve the accuracy of satellite-based estimate of forest photosynthetic productivity in fine spatial and temporal resolutions, which are necessary for detecting any response of terrestrial ecosystem to meteorological fluctuations.