Mapping Landscape Changes in Šumava National Park (Czech Republic) Using Quantum GIS

The research territory is located in Šumava National Park (further ŠNP), Czech Republic. Since 1990 it has been the protected Biospherical Reserve of UNESCO, and the Natura 2000 protected area: the Bird EU Directive as well as the Habitat EU Directive. The components of the ŠNP represent is the largest (68,064 ha) terrestrial significant part of the Natura 2000 network in two countries: Czech Republic and Germany. ŠNP includes precious flora and fauna objects of protection. NP Šumava is the principal European division between the North and the Black Sea. Hydrologically it includes most of the drainage area to the North Sea, the Elbe River Basin with major rivers Vltava and Otava: springs and bogs, rivers, glacial lakes and artificial water works. A small part of the territory on the border falls within the catchment area of the Danube flows into the Black Sea. The whole Šumava National Park is included in the protected areas of natural water accumulation, which are implemented safeguards designed to prevent the reduction of the water potential, adverse changes in water quality and negative interference in natural conditions. It forms a unique protected forested area in Central Europe and one of the largest forested areas between the Atlantic Ocean and the Ural. The GIS analysis has been used to test the importance of the natural and human-induced land used changes for survival of the important floristic locations in several case studies. Thus, landscape level predictors of commons (their location, size, borders) are evaluated using geospatial data: vector GIS layers and aerial images. The information received from these data includes digital model of the terrain (altitudes), vertical heterogeneity, slope, topographical related moisture index, heat load index and solar radiation index. The GIS based mapping was performed as a spatial analysis of the whole area and overlay with Landsat TM image, synthesis of individual components, masking and generalization of the map of ŠNP. This research demonstrated current distribution of the spruce and mixed forests in the study area, visualized biogeographic areas, e.g. raised bogs, springs, fens, transitional mires and distribution of valuable biotopes within the ŠNP. The results include cartographic and textual data.