land cover
the observed physical cover on the earth's surface. when considering land cover in a strict sense it should be confined to describe the vegetation and the human-made features. however, absence of cover, as where the surface consists of bare rock or bare soil, or a shallow water surface, in practice is described under land cover as well. land cover should not be confused with land use.for example, woodland or forest is a land cover, but the land use may be hunting or rubber tapping