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<front>
<journal-meta>
<journal-id journal-id-type="publisher">ISPRS-Archives</journal-id>
<journal-title-group>
<journal-title>The International Archives of the Photogrammetry, Remote Sensing and Spatial Information Sciences</journal-title>
<abbrev-journal-title abbrev-type="publisher">ISPRS-Archives</abbrev-journal-title>
<abbrev-journal-title abbrev-type="nlm-ta">Int. Arch. Photogramm. Remote Sens. Spatial Inf. Sci.</abbrev-journal-title>
</journal-title-group>
<issn pub-type="epub">2194-9034</issn>
<publisher><publisher-name>Copernicus Publications</publisher-name>
<publisher-loc>Göttingen, Germany</publisher-loc>
</publisher>
</journal-meta>
<article-meta>
<article-id pub-id-type="doi">10.5194/isprs-archives-XLIX-B3-2026-1197-2026</article-id>
<title-group>
<article-title>Lights that Extinguish Nature in Protected Forests: A Look at the Impact of Light Pollution</article-title>
</title-group>
<contrib-group><contrib contrib-type="author" xlink:type="simple"><name name-style="western"><surname>Freire-Granda</surname>
<given-names>David</given-names>
</name>
<xref ref-type="aff" rid="aff1">
<sup>1</sup>
</xref>
<xref ref-type="aff" rid="aff2">
<sup>2</sup>
</xref>
</contrib>
<contrib contrib-type="author" xlink:type="simple"><name name-style="western"><surname>Cevallos-Misco</surname>
<given-names>Sheyla</given-names>
</name>
<xref ref-type="aff" rid="aff3">
<sup>3</sup>
</xref>
</contrib>
<contrib contrib-type="author" xlink:type="simple"><name name-style="western"><surname>Peña-Villacreses</surname>
<given-names>Gina</given-names>
</name>
<xref ref-type="aff" rid="aff4">
<sup>4</sup>
</xref>
</contrib>
<contrib contrib-type="author" xlink:type="simple"><name name-style="western"><surname>Perez-Correa</surname>
<given-names>Julian</given-names>
</name>
<xref ref-type="aff" rid="aff3">
<sup>3</sup>
</xref>
</contrib>
<contrib contrib-type="author" xlink:type="simple"><name name-style="western"><surname>Nieto</surname>
<given-names>Julia</given-names>
</name>
<xref ref-type="aff" rid="aff3">
<sup>3</sup>
</xref>
</contrib>
<contrib contrib-type="author" xlink:type="simple"><name name-style="western"><surname>de Paula</surname>
<given-names>Eder M.S.</given-names>
</name>
<xref ref-type="aff" rid="aff5">
<sup>5</sup>
</xref>
</contrib>
<contrib contrib-type="author" xlink:type="simple"><name name-style="western"><surname>Velastegui-Montoya</surname>
<given-names>Andrés</given-names>
</name>
<xref ref-type="aff" rid="aff2">
<sup>2</sup>
</xref>
<xref ref-type="aff" rid="aff6">
<sup>6</sup>
</xref>
</contrib>
</contrib-group><aff id="aff1">
<label>1</label>
<addr-line>Faculty of Mechanical Engineering and Production Sciences, ESPOL Polytechnic University, Guayaquil, Ecuador</addr-line>
</aff>
<aff id="aff2">
<label>2</label>
<addr-line>Laboratory of Geoinformation and Remote Sensing, Faculty of Engineering in Earth Sciences, ESPOL Polytechnic University, Guayaquil, Ecuador</addr-line>
</aff>
<aff id="aff3">
<label>3</label>
<addr-line>Faculty of Life Sciences, ESPOL Polytechnic University, Guayaquil, Ecuador</addr-line>
</aff>
<aff id="aff4">
<label>4</label>
<addr-line>Laboratório de Oceanografia Costeira e Estuarina, Instituto de Estudos Costeiros, Universidade Federal do Pará, Bragança, Brazil</addr-line>
</aff>
<aff id="aff5">
<label>5</label>
<addr-line>Faculty of Geography, Federal University of Pará, Belém, Brazil</addr-line>
</aff>
<aff id="aff6">
<label>6</label>
<addr-line>Faculty of Engineering in Earth Sciences, ESPOL Polytechnic University, Guayaquil, Ecuador</addr-line>
</aff>
<pub-date pub-type="epub">
<day>30</day>
<month>07</month>
<year>2026</year>
</pub-date>
<volume>XLIX-B3-2026</volume>
<fpage>1197</fpage>
<lpage>1204</lpage>
<permissions>
<copyright-statement>Copyright: &#x000a9; 2026 David Freire-Granda et al.</copyright-statement>
<copyright-year>2026</copyright-year>
<license license-type="open-access">
<license-p>This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. To view a copy of this licence, visit <ext-link ext-link-type="uri"  xlink:href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/</ext-link></license-p>
</license>
</permissions>
<self-uri xlink:href="https://isprs-archives.copernicus.org/articles/XLIX-B3-2026/1197/2026/isprs-archives-XLIX-B3-2026-1197-2026.html">This article is available from https://isprs-archives.copernicus.org/articles/XLIX-B3-2026/1197/2026/isprs-archives-XLIX-B3-2026-1197-2026.html</self-uri>
<self-uri xlink:href="https://isprs-archives.copernicus.org/articles/XLIX-B3-2026/1197/2026/isprs-archives-XLIX-B3-2026-1197-2026.pdf">The full text article is available as a PDF file from https://isprs-archives.copernicus.org/articles/XLIX-B3-2026/1197/2026/isprs-archives-XLIX-B3-2026-1197-2026.pdf</self-uri>
<abstract>
<p>Light pollution has become established as a global environmental issue, driven by urbanisation and the growing use of artificial light at night (ALAN), which disrupts the natural rhythms of ecosystems. This phenomenon negatively affects biodiversity; particularly nocturnal species whose ecological interactions depend on darkness. This study assesses the impact of light pollution on protected forests in Guayaquil, Ecuador, specifically Cerro Blanco, Papagayo, Estero Salado, and Prosperina. Using VIIRS satellite imagery from 2014, 2019, and 2024, variations in nighttime radiance and their impact on local species such as &lt;em&gt;Engystomops guayaco&lt;/em&gt; and &lt;em&gt;Sylvilagus dauleensis&lt;/em&gt; were analysed. The results show an increase in light pollution near urban boundaries, particularly in Cerro Blanco, disrupting biological rhythms and threatening the survival of these nocturnal species. This study highlights the urgent need for public policies that promote sustainable lighting and the creation of &amp;ldquo;dark zones&amp;rdquo; to mitigate these effects and preserve biodiversity in these critical ecosystems.</p>
</abstract>
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