LiDAR for Forestry: Measuring Timber Volume Precisely
Estimating how much timber a forest stand contains has traditionally meant sending crews to measure a sample of trees and extrapolating. Drone LiDAR replaces that sampling guesswork with a complete canopy height model covering every tree in the surveyed area.
By capturing both the ground elevation and the top of the canopy for every point, LiDAR calculates tree height directly, and height combined with canopy area gives foresters a strong basis for volume and biomass estimation across an entire stand.
Watch the Canopy Height Model Build
Live Canopy Volume Accumulation
Adjust Stand Density
Interactive Volume Calculator
Sample Individual Trees
Click a Tree to Measure It
How LiDAR Volume Estimation Works
Digital terrain model creation
Ground classification produces a bare earth model representing the terrain surface beneath the canopy.
Digital surface model creation
The highest returns in each area form a surface model representing the top of the canopy.
Canopy height model calculation
Subtracting terrain elevation from surface elevation gives precise tree height at every point across the stand.
Individual tree segmentation
Algorithms identify individual tree crowns within the canopy height model for per-tree analysis.
Volume and biomass estimation
Height, crown area, and species-specific allometric equations combine to estimate timber volume across the stand.
Because LiDAR captures the entire stand rather than a sample plot, volume estimates can account for natural variation across the site, including gaps, dense clusters, and edge effects that traditional plot-based sampling often misses.
A sample plot tells you about a few trees. LiDAR tells you about every tree in the stand.
Applying This to Forestry Projects
Whether for timber inventory, carbon stock assessment, or plantation management, complete canopy coverage changes what is possible in forestry analysis. Our drone survey team delivers canopy height models from LiDAR scan data tailored to forestry and plantation clients.
Need a forest volume or biomass assessment?
Tell us your stand area and species mix and we will explain our LiDAR-based approach.
Frequently Asked Questions
LiDAR calculates tree height by subtracting the ground elevation from the canopy surface elevation at each point, giving precise height across the stand.
A canopy height model is a dataset representing tree height at every location across a forest stand, calculated from LiDAR terrain and surface models.
LiDAR captures the entire stand rather than a sample plot, often providing more representative volume estimates that account for natural variation across the site.
Yes, segmentation algorithms can identify individual tree crowns within the canopy height model, enabling per-tree height and volume analysis.
It is a species-specific mathematical relationship between tree height, crown area, and timber volume, used to convert LiDAR measurements into volume estimates.
Yes, biomass estimates derived from LiDAR canopy data are commonly used as an input for forest carbon stock assessment and monitoring programs.
Yes, LiDAR volume estimation applies to both natural forest stands and managed plantations, though plantation uniformity often simplifies the analysis.
Coverage depends on drone endurance and flight planning, but LiDAR surveys can efficiently map forest stands ranging from small plots to large plantation areas.
Limited ground truthing with a small number of field-measured trees helps calibrate and validate the allometric equations used in volume estimation.
Canopy structure irregularities visible in LiDAR data can indicate stress or disease patterns, though dedicated multispectral sensors often complement this analysis.
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