The Physical Environment of Cuba - Landscape Characterization
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There are many ways to classify or categorize a landscape. For the physical environment there are several major methodologies to accomplish this task, depending on the goal. Landscapes may be categorized by local, regional national, or global-scale landscape characteristics. This page has been organized to illustrate several of the best known and acknowledged approaches.
	These land cover classes were derived from the class definitions of the IGBP land cover classification in combination with the GeoCover land cover legend. The land cover categories were created using a combination of parallelepiped and maximum likelihood rules. The satellite data used for this land cover map is Landsat. The resulting classification of Cuba is shown above. For a more detailed description of the classification and methodology, please contact Dr Gebelein.
Other Significant Classification Efforts
The North American Landscape Characterization (NALC) project has been developed to take advantage of historical and current Landsat satellite remote sensor measurements for evaluation of global processes. These efforts involve characterizing land cover types or landscape features, and evaluating their change using satellite sensors. For more information on techniques, scientists, publications and contact information, please click here.
Scientists have mapped 867 land-based ecoregions around the globe and defined them by shared ecological features including climate, animal and plant communities. This online database and interactive mapping system is called the "Terrestrial Ecoregions of the World". More information about Cuba's ecoregions, as well as the rest of the world's ecoregions can be found by clicking here. This site is sponsored by National Geographic.
The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) for the United Nations and its 190 members has established an online mapping website for Cuban data. To aid researchers they have established mapping data for the following things: administration, elevation, farming systems, land cover, length of growing period, major environmental constraints, NOAA satellite images, permanent crops and arable land, population totals, precipitation, relief and slope, and temperature. Links to data sources are also provided. For more information please click here.

For more information or advice pertaining to land cover characterization, contact Dr. Gebelein.

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