Title:

Change in Mendocino National Forest vegetative land classification between 2012 and 2022

Author(s):

Drury, Stacy A.; Wright, Jamie L.

Publication Year:

2026

How to Cite:

These data were collected using funding from the U.S. Government and can be used without additional permissions or fees. If you use these data in a publication, presentation, or other research product please use the following citation:

Drury, Stacy A.; Wright, Jamie L. 2026. Change in Mendocino National Forest vegetative land classification between 2012 and 2022. Fort Collins, CO: Forest Service Research Data Archive. https://doi.org/10.2737/RDS-2026-0050

Abstract:

We quantified land classification change in the Mendocino National Forest (MNF) in California between 2012 and 2022 to provide an overview of the effect the 2018 Ranch Fire (roughly southern half of MNF) and the 2020 August Complex (roughly northern half of the MNF) had on vegetation distribution. The August and Ranch fires burned over 88% of the MNF leading to widespread ecosystem change. This data publication contains imagery from the National Agriculture Imagery Program (NAIP) collected for 2012 and 2022 covering the entire MNF. From the NAIP imagery two land classification maps were generated for 2012 and 2022. From the land classification maps, a change detection map was created that quantified pixels that change classes as well as remain unchanged. In addition to quantifying land class change between 2012 and 2022, these land classification maps are part of a larger study to elucidate apparent expansion of conifer into other vegetation types over the 50 years from 1942 to 2012. This study will eventually use imagery and land classification maps on an interval of approximately ten years to track conifer land change from the 1940s into the 21st century.

Keywords:

biota; Climate change; Ecological adaptation; Ecology, Ecosystems, & Environment; Landscape ecology; Fire; Fire ecology; Forest & Plant Health; Climate effects; Natural Resource Management & Use; Forest management; NAIP; land classification; California; Mendocino National Forest

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  • RDS-2026-0050_Metadata_Fileindex_VarDescrips.zip (19.77 KB; Checksum)
  • RDS-2026-0050_Data_LandChange.zip (3.44 GB; Checksum)
  • RDS-2026-0050_Data_Mendocino2012.zip (15 GB; Checksum)
  • RDS-2026-0050_Data_Mendocino2022.zip (32.5 GB; Checksum)
  • RDS-2026-0050_Data_MendocinoBackground.zip (55.77 KB; Checksum)

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