GPS Tools Used in Mapping Tulip Areas in Crimea.

A joint field expedition by ULRMC and Vernadsky Tavria National University in Simferopol confirmed the existence of areas of Tulipa schrenkii Regel, a Red Book species, in the lands surrounding Crimean Sivash.

A one-day expedition, undertaken to study vegetative biodiversity and human impacts, was based on the application of GPS and Landsat-derived earth imagery, a new approach in mapping areas of rare species of vegetation.

The preliminary results of the expedition revealed that the new areas of the tulip are nonrandom and directly related to land protection measures and lack of industrial activity. Additionally, such species in some areas are rather extensive.

The joint initiative by ULRMC and Vernadsky Tavria National University aims to apply GIS and remote sensing data in developing a science-based approach in the management of natural protected areas in Crimea.

The ULRMC expeditions are part of a ULRMC project, funded by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID/Kyiv). Dzhankoy Raion Administration and the Republican Committee on Environmental Protection and Natural Resources of Crimea provided technical support to the expedition.