Linking foliage spectral responses to canopy-level ecosystem photosynthetic light-use efficiency at a Douglas-fir forest in Canada

The light-use efficiency (LUE) of a mature Canadian Douglas-fir forest (DF49) was studied using high-resolution in situ temporal, spatial, and spectral measurements in conjunction with fluxes acquired from an instrumented tower. We examined the photochemical reflectance index (PRI), a spectral index responsive to high light conditions that alters reflectance at 531 nm, in combination with several alternative reference bands at 551, 570, and 488 nm. These indices were derived from directional reflectance spectra acquired by a hyperspectral radiometer system mounted on the DF49 tower, viewing the canopy through almost 360° rotations multiple times an hour daily throughout the 2006 growing season. From canopy structure information, three foliage sectors within the canopy were delineated according to instantaneous illumination conditions (sunlit, shaded, and mixed shaded–sunlit). On sunny days, the PRI indices for the sunlit foliage sector captured high light-induced stress responses, expressed as significant...