Evaluating the Suitability of Multi-Scale Terrain Attribute Calculation Approaches for Seabed Mapping Applications

Abstract The scale dependence of benthic terrain attributes is well-accepted, and multi-scale methods are increasingly applied for benthic habitat mapping. There are, however, multiple ways to calculate terrain attributes at multiple scales, and the suitability of these approaches depends on the purpose of the analysis and data characteristics. There are currently few guidelines establishing the appropriateness of multi-scale raster calculation approaches for specific benthic habitat mapping applications. First, we identify three common purposes for calculating terrain attributes at multiple scales for benthic habitat mapping: (i) characterizing scale-specific terrain features, (ii) reducing data artefacts and errors, and (iii) reducing the mischaracterization of ground-truth data due to inaccurate sample positioning. We then define criteria that calculation approaches should fulfill to address these purposes. At two study sites, five raster terrain attributes, including measures of orientation, relative position, terrain variability, slope, and rugosity were calculated at multiple scales using four approaches to compare the suitability of the approaches for these three purposes. Results suggested that specific calculation approaches were better suited to certain tasks. A transferable parameter, termed the ‘analysis distance’, was necessary to compare attributes calculated using different approaches, and we emphasize the utility of such a parameter for facilitating the generalized comparison of terrain attributes across methods, sites, and scales.