Spatial transformation of changes in global cultivated land

Abstract

The spatial transformation of cultivated land is an important element in the study of land use transformation. Analyzing the characteristics and direction of the global spatial transformation of cultivated land is of great significance in clarifying the spatial extent and quality of global cultivated land and ensuring global food security. In this context, this paper uses the global spatial data of cultivated land from 1992 to 2015 to analyze the characteristics of global cultivated land spatial transformation from the perspectives of cultivated land quantity, cultivated land landscape pattern, and cultivated land management pattern, applying the Mann-Kendall trend tests, trend analysis, landscape pattern index measures, and global rural per capita cultivated indicators. The global cultivated land area increased, followed by a decrease, during the study period; there were three distinct phases of change, with the years 1995 and 2005 as turning points. During the first phase, the global cultivated land area increased at an average annual rate of 0.19 %, in the second phase, the increase rate was 0.30 %, and in the third phase, the increase rate was −0.003 %. Based on the trend of cultivated land change during the study period, the areas with a dramatic change in cultivated land area were classified into six typical hotspot areas, involving the increase and decrease of area change in 10 different countries. The two countries with the largest increases in cultivated land area are Sweden and Brazil (24.82 % and 24.43 %, respectively), whereas Ukraine's cultivated land area decreased throughout the study period.