Uncovering Ecological Patterns with Convolutional Neural Networks

Using remotely sensedimagery to identify biophysicalcomponents across landscapes is an important avenue of investigation for ecologists studying ecosystem dynamics. With high-resolution remotely sensedimagery, algorithmic utilization of image context is crucial for accurate identification of biophysicalcomponents at large scales. In recent years, convolutional neural networks(CNNs) have become ubiquitous in image processing, and are rapidly becoming more common in ecology. Because the quantity of high-resolution remotely sensedimagery continues to rise, CNNs are increasingly essential tools for large-scale ecosystem analysis. We discuss here the conceptual advantages of CNNs, demonstrate how they can be used by ecologists through distinct examples of their application, and provide a walkthrough of how to use them for ecological applications.