Different effects of human settlements changes on landscape fragmentation in China: Evidence from grid cell

Abstract

Exploring how human settlement expansion affects landscape fragmentation is particularly critical to understanding the complex interactions between human activities and landscape functions, patterns, and processes. Here, we use recently developed built-up data and land use data to characterize this effect and its spatial–temporal heterogeneity between 1975 and 2014 in China based on the grids at the national level. Findings suggest that the mean built-up ratio has enlarged three-fold in the past 40 years. The landscape pattern has become increasingly fragmented. Due to anthropogenic encroachment, human settlement expansion has become directly associated with natural habitat loss. Meanwhile, the swift growth of settlements leads to landscape fragmentation with a snowballing number of patches and reducing mean patch size. However, landscape isolation is negatively correlated with settlement expansion. Contrary to traditional perception, the influence of settlement growth on landscape fragmentation in large cities is not as pronounced as that of small and medium cities. Furthermore, there are significant regional differences and gradient effects in the impact of settlement expansion on landscape fragmentation. Specifically, this impact is most intense in western China, followed by central China, and the weakest in eastern China. Several innovative policy implications of these findings are discussed.