Research
New laser mapping tool helps scientists track baby trees and monitor forest regrowth on a massive scale
Earth.com · By Luis Arrais ·
The Brief
- A new laser mapping tool is being used to track young trees and monitor forest regrowth across a large stretch of the Cairngorms in Scotland.
- Woodland once covered half to four-fifths of Scotland, but only about 4 percent of the native forest is left.
- The Cairngorms are known for bare, heather-covered hills that were once forest.
Why it matters
The tool offers a way to monitor natural forest regeneration over large areas, which matters for science readers following ecological restoration and land-use research.
Who’s affected
- ecologists and forest researchers
- anyone following Scottish land and forest restoration
- #forest-regrowth
- #laser-mapping
- #scotland
- #forest-restoration
- #remote-sensing
The Cairngorms, in Scotland’s Highlands, are famous for bare, heather-covered hills. Those hills used to be forest. Woodland once covered half to four-fifths of the country, but only about 4 percent of the native forest is left. Across one stretch of the Cairngorms, though, the…