International Journal of Ecosystem

The International Journal of Ecosystem (IJE) is a peer-reviewed journal publishes papers from original research in all areas of ecosystem structure and function as impacted by the changes in climate and land and water use and management practices in a given environment. In the aforementioned context the characterization of ecosystem structural components as community of plants, animals and smaller organisms that live, feed, reproduce and how they interact with each other in the same area or environment, their interdependency are essential for the improved understanding of the functioning of the structural components. The modifications in the structural components as impacted by human imposed changes and/or linked to climate changes are poorly understood and/or are not recorded after rigorous review. In aforementioned context the IJE provides a forum for discussion in the modifications in ecosystem structural components and the associated functions around the world, particularly from developing countries, aimed at the sustainable use of natural resources. Critical review articles are also welcome.

Lalit Kumar

Editorial Board Member of International Journal of Ecosystem

Senior Lecturer, Ecosystem Management, University of New England, Australia

Research Areas

Environmental Modelling, Climate Change, GIS, Remote Sensing, Natural Resource Management

Education

1995-1998Ph.D (GIS/RS)University of New South Wales, Sydney.
1994MasterApplied Science (GIS/RS), University of New South Wales, Sydney.
1992-1993MasterScience (Soil Physics), University of the South Pacific, Fiji.
1987-1988BachelorScience (Environmental Physics), University of the South Pacific, Fiji.
1984-1988BachelorBachelor of Education, University of the South Pacific, Fiji.

Experience

2002-presentSenior Lecturer–GIS, Remote Sensing, Environmental Science (University of New England)
2008-2011Convenor, Ecosystem Management
2003-2008Coordinator, Centre for Spatial Sciences
2000-2002Assistant Professor, International Institute for Aerospace Survey & Earth Sciences; Agriculture, Conservation & Environment Division; The Netherlands.
1998-2000Research Scientist, Wageningen University, The Netherlands
1996-1998Lecturer, University of New South Wales, Sydney.
1989-1994Lecturer, University of The South Pacific, School of Pure and Applied Sciences, Fiji.

Academic Achievement

1994-1998 AusAid PhD scholarship
2005 John J Davidson award for outstanding paper of practical or applied nature-American Society for Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing
2006 Erasmus Mundus visiting scholar award

Membership

Member, Spatial Sciences Institute of Australia
Member, Geography Society of Australia
Member, Ecological Society of Australia
Member, American Society for Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing

Publications: Journals

[1]  Sinha, P., Kumar, L., Reid, N. (In Press) Mid-summer Landsat images provide consistently high accuracy in land-cover classification in a mid-latitudinal region of diverse climate and land use. Photogrammetric Engineering & Remote Sensing.
[2]  Taylor, S., Kumar, L. Reid, N., Lewis, C.R.G. (In Press) Optimal band selection from hyperspectral data for Lantana camara discrimination. International Journal of Remote Sensing.
[3]  Taylor, S., Kumar, L., Reid, N. (In Press) Accuracy Comparison of Quickbird, Landsat TM and SPOT 5 Imagery for Lantana camara Mapping. Journal of Spatial Science
[4]  Khormi, H., Kumar, L. (In Press) Identifying and visualizing spatial patterns and hotspots of dengue fever clinically confirmed cases and female Aedes aegypti mosquitoes in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. Dengue Bulletin.
[5]  Khormi, H., Kumar, L., Elzahrany, R. (2011) Modeling spatiotemporal risk changes in the incidence of dengue fever in Saudi Arabia: a geographic information system case study. Geospatial Health, 6(1): 77-84.
[6]  Khormi, H., Kumar, L. (2011) Modeling Dengue Fever Risk Based on Socioeconomic Parameters, Nationality and Age groups: GIS and Remote Sensing Based Case Study. Science of the Total Environment. 409: 4713:4719.
[7]  Khormi, H., Kumar, L., Elzahrany, R. (2011) Describing and Analysing the Association between Meteorological Variables and Adult Aedes Aegypti Mosquitoes. Journal of Food, Agriculture and Environment, 9: 954-959.
[8]  Alqadi, K., Kumar, L. (2011) Water issues in the Kingdom of Jordan: A brief review with reasons for declining quality. Journal of Food, Agriculture and Environment, 9: 1019-1023.
[9]  Khormi, H., Kumar, L. (2011) Examples of using spatial information technologies for mapping and modeling mosquito-borne diseases based on environmental, climatic and socio-economic factors and different spatial statistics, temporal risk indices and spatial analysis: A review. Journal of Food, Agriculture & Environment. 9(2): 41-49.
[10]  Twongyirwe, R., Majaliwa, J.G.M., Ebanyat, P., Tenywa, M.M., Sheil, D., Heist, M. Van., Oluka, M., Kumar, L. (2011) Dynamics of forest cover conversion in and around Bwindi impenetrable forest, South-western Uganda. Journal of Applied Sciences and Environmental Management.15(1): 189-195
[11]  Saremi, H., Kumar, L., Sarmadian, F., Heidari, A. (2011) GIS based evaluation of land suitability-a case study for major crops in Zanjan University region. Journal of Food, Agriculture & Environment. 9(1): 741-744
[12]  Ismail, R., Mutanga, O., Kumar, L. (2010) Modeling the potential distribution of pine forests that are susceptible to Sirex noctilio infestations in Mpumalanga, South Africa. Transactions in GIS. 14(5): 709-726
[13]  Taylor, S., Kumar, L., Reid, N. (2010) Mapping Lantana Camara: Accuracy comparison of various fusion techniques. Photogrammetric Engineering & Remote Sensing. 76(6): 691-700
[14]  Kumar, L. (2010) Leaf level experiments to discriminate between eucalyptus species using high spectral resolution reflectance data: Use of derivatives, ratios and vegetation indices. Geocarto International, 25(4): 327-344.
[15]  Mutanga, O., van Aardt, J., Kumar, L. (2009) Imaging spectroscopy (hyperspectral remote sensing) in southern Africa: an overview. South African Journal of Science, 105: 193-198.
[16]  Ismail, R., Mutanga, O., Kumar, L., Bob, U. (2008) Determining the optimal spatial resolution of remotely sensed data for the detection of Sirex noctilio infestations in pine plantations in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. The South African Geographical Journal, 90(1): 22-31
[17]  Kumar, L. (2007) High-spectral resolution data for determining leaf water content in Eucalyptus species: leaf level experiments. Geocarto International. 22:3-16.
[18]  Kumar, L. (2007) A comparison of reflectance characteristics of some Australian eucalyptus species based on high spectral resolution data – discriminating using the visible and NIR regions. Journal of Spatial Science, 52(2): 51-64.
[19]  Liu, C. Frazier, P., Kumar, L. (2007) Comparative assessment of the measures of thematic classification accuracy. Remote Sensing of Environment, 107: 606-616.
[20]  Mutanga, O. and Kumar, L. (2007) Estimating and mapping grass phosphorus concentration in an African savanna using hyperspectral image data. International Journal of Remote Sensing, 28(21): 4897-4911.
[21]  Kandeh, J.M.K., Kumar, L. (2006) Standardization in mapping and monitoring of invasive alien plant species. Journal of Environmental Informatics 7 (1): 36-47.
[22]  Kumar, L., Skidmore, A.K. (2006) NIR and SWIR Reflectance characteristics of dry plant materials of some Eucalyptus species. International Journal of GeoInformatics, 2(1): 47-59.
[23]  Liu, C., Frazier, P., Kumar, L., MacGregor, C., Blake, N. (2006) Catchment-wide wetland assessment and prioritization using the multi-criteria decision-making method TOPSIS. Environmental Management 38(2): 316-326.
[24]  Mutanga, O., Skidmore, A.K., Kumar, L., and Ferwerda, J. (2005) Estimating tropical pasture quality at canopy level using band depth analysis with continuum removal in the visible domain. International Journal of Remote Sensing, 26(6): 1093-1108).
[25]  Schmidt, K.S., Skidmore, A.K., Kloosterman, E.H., Van Oosten, H., Kumar, L., Janssen, J. (2004) Mapping coastal vegetation using an expert system and hyperspectral imagery. Photogrammetric Engineering and Remote Sensing, 70(6): 703-715.
[26]  van Langevelde, F., van de Vijver, C.A.D.M., Kumar, L., van de Koppel, J., de Ridder, N., van Andel, J., Skidmore, A.K., Hearne, J., Stroosnijder, L., Bond, W.J., Prins, H.H.T., and Rietkerk, M. (2003). Effects of fire and herbivory on the stability of savanna ecosystems. Ecology, 84(2): 337-350.
[27]  Kumar, L., Rietkerk, M., van Langevelde, F., van de Koppel, J., van Andel, J., Hearne, J., de Ridder, N., Stroosnijder, L., Prins, H.H.T., Skidmore, A.K. (2002) Relationship between vegetation recovery rates and soil type in the Sahel of Burkina Faso: Implications for resource utilization at large scales. Ecological Modelling, 149: 143-152.
[28]  Rietkerk, M., Ouedraogo, T., Kumar, L., Sanou, S., Van Langevelde, F., Kiema, A., Van de Koppel, J., Van Andel, J., Hearne, J., Skidmore, A.K., De Ridder, N., Stroosnijder, L., and Prins, H.H.T. (2002). Fine-scale spatial distribution of plants and resources on a sandy soil in the Sahel. Plant and Soil 239: 69– 77.
[29]  Rietkerk, M., Boerlijst, M.C., Van Langevelde, F., HilleRisLambers, R., Van de Koppel, J., Kumar, L., Klausmeier, C.A., Prins, H.H.T., De Roos, A. (2002) Self-organisation of vegetation in arid ecosystems. The American Naturalist, 160(4): 524–530.
[30]  Rietkerk, M., van de Koppel, J., Kumar, L., van Langevelde, F., Prins, H.H.T. (2002) The Ecology of Scale. Ecological Modelling, 149: 1-4.
[31]  van de Koppel, J., Rietkerk, M., van Langevelde, F., Kumar, L., Klausmeier, A., Fryxell, J.M., Hearne, J., van Andel, J., de Ridder, N., Skidmore, A.K., Stroosnijder, L., Prins, H.H.T. (2002) Spatial heterogeneity and irreversible vegetation change in semi-arid grazing systems. The American Naturalist, 159(2): 209-218.
[32]  Kumar, L., Skidmore, A.K. (2000) Radiation-vegetation relationships in an Eucalyptus forest. Photogrammetric Engineering and Remote Sensing, 66(2): 193-204.
[33]  Kumar, L., Skidmore, A.K., Knowles, E. (1997) Modelling topographic variation in solar radiation in a GIS environment. International Journal of Geographical Information Science, 11(5): 475-497.
[34]  Skidmore, A.K., Bijker, W., Schmidt, K., Kumar, L. (1997) Use of Remote Sensing and GIS for Sustainable Land Management. ITC Journal 1997-3/4: 302-315.

Publications: Conferences/Workshops/Symposiums

[1]  Taylor, S., Kumar, L., Reid, N., Kriticos, D.J. (2011) The potential distribution of Lantana Camara L. in relation to climate change. Proceedings Rural Climate Change Solutions Symposium, 3-4 May, Armidale NSW, Australia. pp 22-24.
[2]  Ahlawat, V., Jhorar, Om., Kumar, L., Backhouse, D. (2011) Using hyperspectral remote sensing as a tool for early detection of leaf rust in blueberries. Proceedings – 34th International Symposium on Remote Sensing of Environment. April 10-15, Sydney Australia.
[3]  Kumar, L. (2011) Reliability of GIS-based solar radiation models and their utilisation in agro-meteorological research. Proceedings – 34th International Symposium on Remote Sensing of Environment. April 10-15, Sydney Australia.
[4]  Dillon, M., Kumar, L. (2011) The Potential of Weather Watch Radar to Predict the Spatial Distribution of Rainfall Patterns in the Kimberley Region and Applications for Natural Resource Management. Proceedings – 34th International Symposium on Remote Sensing of Environment. April 10-15, Sydney Australia.
[5]  Sinha, P., Kumar, L., Reid, N. (2011) Seasonal land use/land cover mapping: Accuracy comparison of various band combinations. Proceedings – 34th International Symposium on Remote Sensing of Environment. April 10-15, Sydney Australia.
[6]  Taylor, S., Kumar, L., Reid, N. (2011) Comparison of Broadband and Hyperspectral Sensors for Lantana Mapping. Proceedings – 34th International Symposium on Remote Sensing of Environment. April 10-15, Sydney Australia.
[7]  Kumar, L. (2010) Remote Sensing and Geographic Information Systems for Resource Assessment – Scope and Capabilities for the Pacific. International Conference on Renewable Energy and Climate Change – Focus on the Pacific. December 6-8, University of the South Pacific, Suva Fiji.
[8]  Kumar, L. (2009) The role of remote sensing in biomass mapping and contribution to the renewable energy & climate change debate. Keynote address at the Sustainable Energy Resources Workshop (SERW 09), December 4, University of The South Pacific, Suva Fiji.
[9]  Kumar, L. (2009) An integrated Remote Sensing GIS project for broad scale management of wildlife and livestock – an example application supporting government in decision making. 2009 Pacific Island Countries GIS & RS User Conference, 1 – 4 December, Suva Fiji.
[10]  Kumar, L. (2009) A comparison of ARCGIS modelled and ground recorded solar radiation data an opportunities for utilisation in environmental Models. Proceedings of The 10th South East Asian Survey Congress, 4-7 August 2009, BICC, Nusadua, Bali, Indonesia. Pages 311-315.
[11]  Kumar, L., Munoz, C., Gross, C. (2009) Use of QuickBird imagery to map vegetation communities to extract Warkworth Sands Woodlands in the Hunter Valley in Australia. Proceedings of The 10th South East Asian Survey Congress, 4-7 August 2009, BICC, Nusadua, Bali, Indonesia. Pages 122-125.
[12]  Taylor, S., Kumar, L., Reid, N. (2009) Use of Remote Sensing techniques in Lantana mapping. Proceedings of The 10th South East Asian Survey Congress, 4-7 August 2009, BICC, Nusadua, Bali, Indonesia. Pages 139-147.
[13]  Kumar, L., Reid, N., Clarke, P., Vernes, K., Geiser, F., Sindel, B., Andrew, N., Prior, J., Young, I. (2009) Managing climate change impacts on biodiversity. Submission to the NSW Legislative Assembly. 31 pages.
[14]  Kumar, L., Munoz, C., Gross, C. (2009) Mapping Vegetation Communities to extract Warkworth Sand Woodlands in the RTCA project area in the Hunter Valley. Report for Rio Tinto Coal & Allied. The University of New England. 29 pages
[15]  Kumar, L. Global Positioning System in a Nutshell. Feature article in Fiji Times, 6 March 2009.
[16]  Kumar, L., Singh, A. (2008) Estimating Fine Scale Ground Solar Radiation From GIS Modelled Data And Historical Meteorological Records. Australian Institute of Physics 18th National Congress, 30 November-5 December 2008.
[17]  Ground, S.F., R.J. Denham, R.J., Kumar, L. (2008) Spot The Pineapple: Mapping Land Use Using An Object-Based Classification Technique. 14th Australasian Remote Sensing and Photogrammetry Conference 29 September-3 October 2008.
[18]  Kumar, L., Clarke, P., Munoz, C. Knox, K. (2008) Mapping of fire severity and comparison of severity indices across vegetation types in Gibraltar Range National Park, Australia. The International Archives of the Photogrammetry, Remote Sensing and Spatial Information Sciences, Vol XXXVII Part B7, pages 1477-1482, Beijing, China, 3-11 July 2008.
[19]  Clarke, P., Kumar, L., Munoz, C., Knox, K (2007) Burn regimes and fire regime thresholds for plant conservation in New England Tableland National Parks. Report for the Department of Environment and Climate Change. 38 pages.
[20]  Kumar, L., Mutanga, O., Ismail, R., Ahmed, F. (2007) Correlation between ground-recorded and GIS modelled solar radiation: development of regression equations for Australian conditions. Proceedings of The 28th Asian Conference on Remote Sensing, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, 12-16 November 2007.
[21]  Mutanga, O., Ismail, R., Ahmed, F., Kumar, L. (2007) Using in-situ hyperspectral remote sensing to discriminate pest attacked pine forests in South Africa. Proceedings of The 28th Asian Conference on Remote Sensing, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, 12-16 November 2007.
[22]  Ismail, R., Mutanga, O., Ahmed, F., Kumar, L. (2007) Predicting the potential distribution of Sirex noctilio infestations in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa: Comparisons between single classification trees and random forest. Proceedings of The 28th Asian Conference on Remote Sensing, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, 12-16 November 2007.
[23]  Aravind, N., Rakhesh.D. and Kumar, L. (2006) Agro-Ecological Zoning Using Temporal Satellite Data and GIS For Cultivation Of Improved Hybrid Varieties Through Precision Farming, Proceedings on International Conference on "Biotechnology Approaches For Alleviating Malnutrition And Human Health" on 9th-11th January 2006, Jointly organized by USAID-ALO Washington, DC, PURDUE University, USA and University of Agricultural Sciences, Bangalore, India.
[24]  Clarke, P.J., Coughlin, R., Kumar, L. (2006) Fire history and fire regimes: Implications for plant conservation in New England Tableland National Parks. The University of New England. Unpublished Report for DEC.
[25]  Liu, C., Frazier, P., Kumar, L. (2006) Predicting the distribution and abundance of two saltmarsh plant species. International Geographical Union Conference, Brisbane, 3-7 July 2006.
[26]  Liu, C., Frazier, P., Kumar, L., Bell, D. (2006) Characterizing the spatial distributions of two saltmarsh plant species. The joint conference of the NZ Ecological Society and the Ecological Society of Australia. Wellington, 28 August to 1 September 2006.
[27]  Kumar, L., Coughlin, R., Mutanga, O., Ismail, R. (2006) Scope of high spatial resolution imagery for mapping Lantana Camara in a forest environment. Proceedings of 6th International Conference on Earth Observation & Geoinformation Sciences in Support of Africa’s Development. Cairo, Egypt 30 October – 2 November.
[28]  Mutanga, O., Kumar, L. (2006) Imaging spectroscopy and grass phosphorous concentration in an african savanna. Proceedings of 6th International Conference on Earth Observation & Geoinformation Sciences in Support of Africa’s Development. Cairo, Egypt 30 October – 2 November.
[29]  Ismail, R., Mutanga, O., Kumar, L., Bob, U. (2006) Examining the effects of spatial resolution on sirex noctilio infestations using NDVI data. Proceedings of 6th International Conference on Earth Observation & Geoinformation Sciences in Support of Africa’s Development. Cairo, Egypt 30 October – 2 November.
[30]  Coughlin, R., and Kumar, L. (2005) Determining the ability of fine-spatial-resolution sensor Quickbird to identify areas with or are susceptible to invasion by the invasive weed Lantana camara within a forest environment. Spatial Sciences Conference, 12-16 September 2005. Melbourne Australia.
[31]  Kandeh, J.M.K., Ahadi, A.W., Kumar, L. (2005) Using Remote Sensing Data for Earthquake Damage Assessment in Afghanistan: The Role of the International Charter. Proceedings of the First International Symposium on Geo-information for Disaster Management, March 21 – 23, Delft, The Netherlands. pp 832 – 84.
[32]  Kumar, L., Laegdsgaard, P., Frazier, P., and MacGregor, C. (2005) Mapping salt-marsh vegetation using high-spatial and hyper-spectral satellite data to assist wetland inventory. Spatial Sciences Conference, 12-16 September 2005. Melbourne Australia.
[33]  Liu, C., Frazier, P., Kumar, L., MacGregor, C., Blake, N. (2005) Multi-criterion GIS-based Assessment of Wetlands: Clarence Catchment, Australia. Spatial Sciences Conference, 12-16 September 2005. Melbourne Australia.
[34]  Su, Xianfeng, Duggin, J.A. and Kumar, L. (2005). Simulation of forest development after open-cut mining using an agent-based model. XXII International Union of Forest Research Organisations World Congress, 8-13 August 2005, Brisbane
[35]  Frazier, P., Graham, J., Duggin, J., MacGregor, C., Kumar, L. (2005) High-spatial resolution remote sensing of wetlands: mapping and monitoring. Spatial Sciences Conference, 12-16 September 2005. Melbourne Australia.
[36]  Lamb, D., Frazier, P, and Kumar, L. (2004) Remote Sensing and Satellite Technology-Implementation and Capabilities, Australian Fertilizer Industry Conference, 2-5 August. Stradbroke Island, Qld.
[37]  Skidmore, A.K., Schmidt, K., Kloosterman, H., Kumar, L, van Oosten, H. (2001) Hyperspectral imagery for coastal wetland vegetation mapping. BCRS Report Project 3.4/DE-13. The Netherlands.
[38]  Kumar, L., van Langevelde, F., Rietkerk, M., van de Koppel, J. (2000) Dependence of post-drought vegetation recovery on soil type and implications for resource utilization. 2000 World Conference on Natural Resource Modelling, Wageningen, The Netherlands. 26-30 June 2000.
[39]  Rietkerk, M., van Langevelde, F., van de Koppel, J., Kumar, L. (2000) The origin of patterns in semi-arid vegetation. 2000 World Conference on Natural Resource Modelling, Wageningen, The Netherlands. 26-30 June 2000.
[40]  van de Koppel, J., Rietkerk, M., van Langevelde, F., Kumar, L. (2000) Spatial heterogeneity and irreversible vegetation change in semi-arid grazing systems. 2000 World Conference on Natural Resource Modelling, Wageningen, The Netherlands. 26-30 June 2000.
[41]  van Langevelde, F., Rietkerk, M., Kumar, L., van de Koppel, J. (2000) Irreversible vegetation collapse and optimal harvesting in semi-arid grazing systems. 2000 World Conference on Natural Resource Modelling, Wageningen, The Netherlands. 26-30 June 2000.
[42]  Kumar, L., Skidmore, A.K. (1998) Use of derivative spectroscopy to identify regions of differences between some Australian Eucalypt species. 9th Australasian Remote Sensing and Photogrammetry Conference, July 20-24, Sydney, Australia.
[43]  Kumar, L. (1997) Solar radiation modelling in Arc/Info GRID and its use in eucalypt species delineation. Proceedings 11th Annual Australian ESRI & ERDAS Users Conference, 3rd-5th September 1997. pp 55-64.
[44]  Kumar, L. (1993) Problems faced by Physics educators in Fiji. Proceedings South Pacific Regional Conference on Pre-tertiary Physics Education, Port Moresby 22-25 June 1993.
[45]  Kumar, L., Willatt, S.T. (1992) Soil compaction as a function of aggregate size and water content. Proceedings 4th National Soils Conference, Australian Society of Soil Science, Adelaide, 19-23 April 1992. p.74.

Publications: Books/Book Chapters

[1]  Kandeh, J.M.K., Ahadi, A.W., Kumar, L. (2005) Using Remote Sensing Data for Earthquake Damage Assessment in Afghanistan: The Role of the International Charter. In Peter van Oosterom, Siyka Zlatanova and Elfriede M. Fendel (Eds) Geo-information for Disaster Management (Springer – Berlin), pp. 829-840.
[2]  Woodcock, C., Macomber, S., Kumar, L. (2002) Vegetation mapping and detection of environmental change. In Skidmore, A.K. (Ed). Environmental modelling using GIS and remote sensing (Taylor & Francis) pp.97-120.
[3]  Kumar, L., Schmidt, K.S., Dury, S., Skidmore, A.K. (2001) Imaging spectrometry and vegetation science. In F. van de Meer. and S.M. de Jong (Eds). Imaging Spectrometry (Kluwer), pp 111-155.