Development of a model for estimating the biomass of pastures using normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI): the case of the Niassa pastoral zone in Burkina Faso

Ghislain Tontibomma BAMBARA 1, 2, *, André KIEMA 2, Valérie M.C. BOUGOUMA-YAMEOGO 1, Abroulaye SANFO 3 and Wièmè SOME 3

1 Rural Development Institute; Bioressources, Agrosystems and Environmental Health Laboratory; Zootechnie Environnement Sustainable Development research team; Nazi Boni University, 01 BP 1091 Bobo-Dioulasso 01, Burkina Faso
2 Department of Animal Production, Animal Nutrition Laboratory, Institute of Environment and Agricultural Research, 01 BP 476 Ouagadougou 01, Burkina Faso.
3 Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Resources and Fisheries, 03 BP 7026 Ouagadougou 03, Burkina Faso.
 
Research Article
GSC Advanced Research and Reviews, 2024, 20(02), 157-166.
Article DOI: 10.30574/gscarr.2024.20.2.0289
Publication history: 
Received on 22 June 2024; revised on 11 August 2024; accepted on 14 August 2024
 
Abstract: 
In Burkina Faso, livestock feeding is based on pasture productivity, which is a key factor in managing livestock productivity. As such, this management requires a good knowledge of pastures. However, the high cost of producing pasture data and the inaccessibility of pastures due to insecurity mean that there is a low availability or lack of data on pasture. This makes it difficult for stakeholders to take decisions to improve livestock feed in the event of a local food crisis. This is why this study aims to facilitate data production by developing a model for estimating herbaceous biomass in pastures using land observation tools. To this end, the study correlated biomass data collected on the ground with satellite imagery. A total of 24 the wooded, shrubby, and grassy savannahs and gallery forests vegetation units were used as ground observation stations. Simple multilinear regression was chosen for the correlation test. The model parameters gave an R² of 0.70, an RMSE of 236.7 kg DM/ha with a p-value of less than 0.0001 and an average production of 1,423 kg DM/ha. Based on these parameters, there is a strong relationship between vegetation indices and pasture biomass. The equation Y=45*Vav+9*Vmx-19*Rrg-2,256 derived from the model can be used to estimate pasture herbaceous biomass. This will improve the availability of data on pasture forage resources for better action planning in a context of insecurity.
 
Keywords: 
Pasture; Herbaceous biomass; NDVI; Estimation equation; Burkina Faso
 
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