Barro Colorado Island AVA Plot Aerial Photogrammetry (2018-2024): Orthomosaics, Digital Surface Models, Point Clouds, and Raw Images

Data are available for download at: https://smithsonian.dataone.org/datasets/BCI_ava_drone_products Metadata are available in metadata_all.csv , variables_description.csv and README.txt This dataset of repeat drone imagery of the AVA plot and surrounding areas on Barro Colorado Island (BCI), Panama is part of a research program investigating spatial and temporal variation in forest structure, dynamics, and composition of forest ecosystems in Panama using uncrewed aerial vehicles (UAVs) or drones to capture high-resolution data. This research is led by Dr. Helene C. Muller-Landau at the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute. The current dataset encompasses flights on 80 dates between November 26, 2018, and March 18, 2024, all conducted using a DJI Phantom 4 Pro drone and a FC6310 camera. The flight interval was near monthly through January 2023, and near weekly thereafter. The data products available within this dataset include orthomosaics, digital surface models (DSMs), point clouds, raw images, and detailed processing reports. All these products are provided in the UTM Zone 17N coordinate reference system (EPSG: 32617). Orthomosaics and DSMs are available in GeoTIFF format, while point clouds are provided as LAS files in versions 1.2 and 1.4. The original drone imagery was independently processed for each date using the Agisoft Metashape Pro 2.0 Python API (Agisoft LLC) following a standardized workflow. Key processing parameters included the highest setting for photo alignment, a medium setting for point cloud construction, and aggressive point filtering. For more details, you can refer to the functions in the script available at this Github link: https://github.com/VasquezVicente/ForestLandscapes/blob/main/LandscapeScripts/UAV_photogrametry.py. This processing produced the initial point clouds, orthomosaics, and digital surface models, which are provided as-is. Eighty flights were conducted centered on the AVA plot, a 6-ha forest area around the AVA tower, which is equipped with physical monitoring equipment including microclimate sensors, an eddy covariance system, and a phenocam. The coverage area also partially includes sections of the 25-ha, 10-ha, and 50-ha plots on BCI. The total covered area was 26 hectares, with the drone operating at a flight altitude of 180 meters above the take-off point. The imagery was captured with a front and side overlap of 79%. The drone maintained a speed of 5.5 meters per second, with the camera set to a shutter interval of 7 seconds.