Ecological Change at Fort Benning GA

Landscape Data Interpretation

The presentation of landscape data in visual format makes an intuitive sort of sense for many people, but proper analysis requires an understanding of the methods utilized in creating the specific visual presentations. In the article regarding landscape changes in Fort Benning, GA, the technology and methodology for rendering the color-coded maps is amply described, as are known problems with the specific visual data presentations provided. In addition, the physical measuring techniques that were used to plot the data ultimately used in the creation of the visual elements published in the report are also detailed in the body of the report, providing other knowledge essential for the analyzing of the visual information. Methods for interpreting the data and a summary of results are presented below.

Physical observation of tree placement and type in the Fort Bennington, GA area was recorded in mapped out clusters, typically with five trees per cluster but with anywhere from one to twelve trees in each cluster, depending on the specific observational techniques utilized. Techniques did differ in the collection of raw data, and the issues this creates are noted by the researchers in the report. Data was then plotted on a grid using polygons to represent tree type or other landscape cover, with each type of tree/cover present in the corresponding geographical area represented by colored dots within the gridded polygon. Finally, data was aggregated and placed on maps of the Fort Bennington region representing different periods in time, providing a direct visual method of observing changes in the areas landscape. Certain confusions in this process using one of the map creation methods are also noted and their effects explained.

The changes that occurred in the landscape of the Fort Bennington, GA area do not appear to be as extreme as they potentially could have been, though there has certainly been a significant change over the past two centuries of human involvement and development in the area. The map estimating forest coverage in the region in 1827 shows dense pine forests covering most of the area, with a moderate amount of mixed forest (deciduous and pine mixes or more sparsely forested areas) speckled throughout along with a few patches of deciduous forest, and two very small areas of cleared land approximating the placement of Native American settlements. By 1974, pine forests are still speckled throughout the region yet are arranged in very small clusters rather than a large continuous swath; bare land and buildings are dotted throughout most of the region and are surrounded by larger patches of cleared land, and deciduous forests have crept in amongst the pine forests to a considerable degree. Later maps indicate a more complete takeover of the region by deciduous trees, to the point that clusters of pine forest have all but disappeared, while bare land and buildings have grown to fill the areas of cleared land that existed in 1974.