Spatial distribution of villages and change of landscape in Guizhou Province, China

Abstract

Guizhou is a multi-ethnic province with the largest number of ethnic minority villages in China. Ethnic minority villages in Guizhou have the characteristics of traditional settlements, such as ancient history and cultural accumulation, as well as their own local culture and ethnic flavour, which have a significant impact on the adjacent land use structure and landscape spatial pattern. Based on land use data from 1990 to 2020, this paper explores the spatial distribution of ethnic villages, the dynamics of land use, and landscape spatial patterns in Guizhou Province. The results show that the distribution of ethnic villages is more concentrated in the southeastern region, with 41% of the villages located in the range of 650–900 m, 35% in the range of 0–4 degrees of slope, and 46% facing south. There are obvious similarities and differences in land use patterns among the ethnic villages in the buffer zone. For example, ethnic villages have a greater impact on the conversion of arable land, forestland, and grassland in the 2 km buffer zone and even higher impact on building land and water bodies in the 1 km buffer zone. The changing trends of the landscape pattern index of each ethnic village are different. The degree of fragmentation in the 0–1 km buffer zone of ethnic villages is low, while the degree of fragmentation of patches within 1–2 km is high, and the degree of fragmentation of patches within the 2–3 km buffer zone is the highest. Studying the spatial distribution and landscape pattern changes of ethnic villages in Guizhou Province provides a theoretical basis for local ecological planning and policy management and is of great significance in promoting the coordinated and sustainable development of the natural, economic, and social aspects of ethnic villages.