Automatic Assessment of Individual Stem Shape Parameters in Forest Stands from TLS Point Clouds: Application in Pinus pinaster

Round 1

Reviewer 1 Report

This paper proposed a methodology for the automatic measurement of stem shape variables focused on straightness and lean, at the individual tree level using TLS data. I believe that it is an excellent study considering these measurements are critical to the wood quality and sawmill performance, as well as it is rather difficult to measure manually. However, there are a few concerns before I recommend it for publication.

major concerns:
1) scope of the study
This study only has one test site which is dominated by pine trees, I suggest that the authors should limit the scope in the title by using a more specific term instead of the general 'TLS point clouds.

2) structure in methods
The general writing is good but some of the structural arrangement is a bit confusing for readers who read for the first time. For example, section 2.1 has an overall head while in 2.2, it lacks a whole picture to describe the general approach. I would suggest a flowchart and a few paragraphs of the overall methods first rather than just listing detailed technique methods. 

minor concerns:
1) 2.1.2 TLS data, I would suggest a description of the point density because it is important for those who want to use your methods proposed.
2) Figure 3, maybe consider putting 1) 2) 3) in the bottom of the subfigure for readability.
3) have you encountered fallen trees in your plot and did you detect or remove it?

Author Response

Dear Reviewer:

My co-authors and I appreciate your prompt response to our Manuscript “Automatic assessment of individual stem shape parameters in forest stands from TLS point clouds”.

We have provided a detailed response to your comments and suggestions and included the corresponding changes in the manuscript. We are grateful for all the recommendations, and we believe this revised version of the manuscript has improved significantly from its previous version.

In the attached file are our responses and references to your comments (in bold).

Once again, thank you very much for considering this manuscript suitable for publication in Forests and for your efforts to review it.

We look forward to receiving your final decision.

Yours faithfully,

Carlos Cabo (corresponding author)

Author Response File: Author Response.docx

Reviewer 2 Report

The paper performs an automatic assessment of individual stem shape parameters in forest stands from TLS data.

The proposed methodology was applied for a breeding trial plot of Pinus pinaster. The topic is an important scientific issue in forest silvicultural management. The inclined or crooked trees are always caused by natural disturbances of hurricane disasters or insect attacks.

Therefore, accurate detection of abnormal positions is very important for evaluating forest health. The manuscript presents a complete description of the method section, but the result section does not exhibit convincing analysis results, i.e., intuitively visualized diagrams with the abnormal detected locations highlighted in different colors.

The TLS points coupled with various colors at the forest plot scale are preferred for the final graphical representation of the detection stem shape variables. Two related works listed below also conducted the inclined tree trunk detection, the experimental figures in the result section could afford you some suggestions to improve your work with a more impressive presentation for the readers.

“Rubber Tree Crown Segmentation and Property Retrieval Using Ground-Based Mobile LiDAR after Natural Disturbances”, “Individual Rubber Tree Segmentation Based on Ground-Based LiDAR Data and Faster R-CNN of Deep Learning”.

Author Response

Dear Reviewer:

My co-authors and I appreciate your prompt response to our Manuscript “Automatic assessment of individual stem shape parameters in forest stands from TLS point clouds”.

We have provided a detailed response to your comments and suggestions and included the corresponding changes in the manuscript. We are grateful for all the recommendations, and we believe this revised version of the manuscript has improved significantly from its previous version.

In the attached file are our responses and references to your comments (in bold).

Once again, thank you very much for considering this manuscript suitable for publication in Forests and for your efforts to review it.

We look forward to receiving your final decision.

Yours faithfully,

Carlos Cabo (corresponding author)

Author Response File: Author Response.docx

Round 2

Reviewer 2 Report

This modified paper provides detailed information to answer my questions and substantial improvements have been made in this round of revisions, especially the newly added Fig. 7 illustrating the different degrees of the detected inclined tree boles. Hence, I have no further concerns that require another review and agree with the acceptance of the paper in its current form.