Landscape Pattern Evolution Research Articles

Evolution of landscape patterns and driving forces in rural areas of the Fuchun River Basin

At the optimal analysis granularity and extent, this study reveals the spatiotemporal evolution characteristics of landscape patterns in rural areas of the Fuchun River Basin from 1990 to 2020. It also explores the spatiotemporal differentiation of driving forces using Geodetector and Geographically Weighted Regression. The results indicate that: 1) The optimal analysis granularity for the study area is 30 m × 30 m, and the optimal analysis extent is 200 m. 2) Compared to the 1990s, the past two decades have seen an increased degree of landscape fragmentation, higher isolation, and stronger human disturbance in the study area, with significant differentiation. These changes are most pronounced in the semi-urbanized areas along the river and in the northern regions. 3) Digital Elevation Model and land cover type are the most critical driving factors. Over time, the explanatory power of most driving factors shows an overall increasing trend. 4) There is a significant spatial heterogeneity in the driving forces. The influence of the Digital Elevation Model and slope is stronger in the north and south, weaker in the central region, while the influence of temperature increases from north to south. The impact of land cover type is stronger in the central area and weaker in the periphery. This study provides a reference for the scientific use of land resources and the protection of ecological spaces in rural areas within highly urbanized regions at the basin scale.

Spatiotemporal Correlation Analysis of Landscape Pattern and Habitat Quality in and Around China’s Tropical Rainforest National Park

With the establishment of the national park system in China, balancing ecological conservation within national parks and development in surrounding areas has become a critical issue. Despite its importance, studies on the scale effects of landscape fragmentation and its relationship with habitat quality (HQ) in these regions remain scarce. Therefore, this study focuses on the Hainan Tropical Rainforest National Park (HTRNP) in China and the surrounding nine cities and counties. The optimal scale for analyzing the spatiotemporal characteristics of landscape patterns, we assessed the best grain size and extent of landscape pattern indices using the regional information loss assessment model, area loss index, and semivariance function analysis. Based on this, the Fragstats and InVEST models analyzed the spatiotemporal evolution of landscape patterns and HQ from 1980 to 2020. Additionally, bivariate spatial autocorrelation theory was applied to examine the spatial correlation between the two. The results show that (1) the landscape indices in the study area vary with grain size and extent. The optimal grain size is 300 m, and the optimal extent is 2 km × 2 km. (2) Over the past 40 years, the landscape pattern of HTRNP has remained stable. In contrast, the surrounding areas exhibit notable spatial differentiation, with landscapes in coastal town centers becoming increasingly fragmented. (3) Over the past 40 years, the overall HQ in the study area has been relatively high, showing a spatial distribution pattern that decreases gradually from the center of HTRNP outward to rural areas, towns, and coastal regions. HTRNP has maintained a high and stable HQ, while the surrounding areas exhibited a decreasing trend in HQ, although the decline was relatively modest. (4) The spatial distribution of HQ aligns closely with landscape patterns, indicating a significant spatial correlation. The landscape connectivity of HTRNP remains high, with consistently superior HQ. In contrast, coastal town centers are characterized by highly fragmented landscapes and poor HQ. This study reveals the spatiotemporal dynamics of landscape patterns and HQ, along with their spatial associations. These findings provide a scientific basis for ecological conservation in national parks and the planning optimization of surrounding areas.

Landscape pattern evolution and ecological security assessment based on land use changes in mining cities: a case study of Heihe city

The development of mining cities has led to changes in land use and the evolution of landscape patterns. Constructing an ecological security evaluation system can reflect the ecological security status of mining city areas and provide planning references for these cities. This study, based on Heihe City’s land use data from 1980 to 2020, systematically analyzes the spatial and temporal evolution characteristics of land use, landscape patterns, and landscape ecological security levels by constructing a land use transfer matrix and calculating landscape pattern indices and landscape ecological security indices. The results show that: 1) Forest land is the main type of land use in Heihe City, accounting for over 50% of the total area. Land use changes primarily occurred between 2000–2010 and 2010–2020, with the spatial pattern characterized by overall stability and localized dramatic shifts, mainly involving the conversion of forest land to farmland and unused land. 2) From 1980 to 2020, the landscape ecological security pattern in Heihe City improved. Landscape diversity and landscape contagion increased, while landscape fragmentation, the largest patch area, and the average patch area decreased. Land use was optimized overall, but the trend of forest fragmentation became noticeable. 3) Between 1980 and 2020, the landscape ecological security level in Heihe City improved significantly. Driven by ecological restoration policies, the ecological security level in the southern region greatly improved, while the spatial pattern continued to show a trend of lower security in the south and higher security in the north. Specifically, the area proportions of low-security and relatively low-security areas increased by 6.23% and 9.55%, respectively. The spatial clustering of landscape ecological security levels is evident, with high-high value clustering mainly in the north and low-low value clustering mainly in the south. It is necessary to further promote ecological protection in the north to ensure the ecological barrier function, while strengthening ecological restoration in the south to improve ecological security levels. Additionally, continuous macro-policy regulation is needed to maintain long-term ecological security in Heihe City. The ecological security level of mining city landscapes is influenced by economic dependence, policy constraints, and environmental issues. This study can provide guidance for planning improvements in the study area and other mining cities.

Assessing the Interaction Impacts of Multi-Scenario Land Use and Landscape Pattern on Water Ecosystem Services in the Greater Bay Area by Multi-Model Coupling

Water ecosystem services (WESs) are intrinsically associated with the livelihood of urban residents and are frequently disrupted by human activities. Land use and landscape patterns are key driving factors of alterations in WESs. However, existing research primarily quantifies single-factor influences and often overlooks the interactions between these factors. This study addresses this gap by employing a multi-model coupling approach, integrating the Patch-generating Land Use Simulation (PLUS), Integrated Valuation of Ecosystem Services and Trade-offs (InVEST) model, and Geographical Detector (GD) models alongside various indicators to analyse the evolution of land use, landscape patterns and WESs in the Greater Bay Area from 2000 to 2020, and to simulate spatio-temporal change patterns in different scenarios from 2030 to 2050. Additionally, this study examines the multi-factorial interactions between land use, landscape patterns, and WESs. The results indicate that (1) urbanisation steadily increased, leading to intensified landscape fragmentation, and water yield (WY) and total phosphorus (TP) consistently increased, while total nitrogen (TN) in water gradually decreased; (2) urban areas exerted the most significant impact on WY in the Greater Bay Area while Patch density (PD) had a stronger influence on WY, and Shannon’s diversity index (SHDI) had the most pronounced effect on TN and TP; (3) the interaction between any two land-use types or landscape indices exerted a greater impact on WESs compared with the impact of individual factors alone. The interaction between urban areas and cropland substantially influenced WY (q¯ = 0.634) and most strongly affected TN and TP in water (q¯ = 0.74 and 0.73, respectively). SHDI and PD had the most significant impact on WY in the economic development scenario (q¯ = 0.19) and exhibited the greatest influence on the TN and TP levels in the ecological priority scenario (q¯ = 0.12 and 0.15, respectively). Our findings can provide theoretical and technical support for the integrated scientific planning of regional water ecosystems and the development of comprehensive land use policies in the future.

Revealing the pinning landscape and related vortex pattern evolution in granular superconducting films

Most superconducting electronics based on films exhibit granular structures. It has been suggested that grain boundaries form a network with relatively weak superconductivity, potentially acting as pinning centers. Yet, so far, detailed microscopic studies of the pinning landscape and its relation to vortex behavior remain scarce. Here, we imaged the vortex lattices (VL) in granular Nb films using magnetic force microscopy over large scanning areas at various magnetic fields. A non-monotonic evolution in the degree of vortex lattice ordering was observed with increasing vortex density, driven by a combination of vortex-vortex interactions and pinning effects. The spatial distribution of pinning potential within the film was directly mapped using a recently developed scanning quantum vortex microscope (SQVM). Instead of the network formed by grain boundaries, the pinning landscape presents a network-like structure, yet with domains significantly larger than the individual grains. The results of numerical simulations based on pinning landscape revealed by SQVM well reproduce our experiments. The pinning force per unit length at low magnetic fields was calculated. The critical current density, estimated from the relative positions of vortices, aligns well with the critical state model. Our work illustrates the relationship between the evolution of the vortex lattice with magnetic field and the structural features of granular Nb film, providing new insights into the design of high-performance superconducting electronic devices.

Landscape Pattern Evolution and Driving Forces in the Downstream River of a Reservoir: A Case Study of the Lower Beijiang River in China

Landscape Pattern Evolution and Driving Forces in the Downstream River of a Reservoir: A Case Study of the Lower Beijiang River in China

Impact of landscape pattern changes on ecosystem service values in the Fenhe River Basin in China

The evolution of landscape patterns affects the supply of ecosystem services. It is important to explore the relationship between them to improve regional ecological stability and maintain ecological health. The Fenhe River is the second largest tributary of the Yellow River and it represents a fragile ecological environment. Our study aimed to analyze the impact of changes in landscape patterns on the value of ecosystem services (ESV) in the Fenhe River Basin (FRB). Land use data from 2000, 2010, and 2020 were used to extract landscape pattern indices. Methods such as ecosystem service value accounting, sensitivity analysis, correlation analysis, and geodetector modeling were employed to investigate changes in landscape patterns and ESV, and to identify the driving forces and impacts of these changes on ESV. The results showed that (1) from 2000 to 2020, the dominant landscape in the FRB was cultivated land, followed by forestland and grassland, which together covered 92% of the total area. (2) Over the past 20 years, the extent of landscape fragmentation had continued to increase and ecological function had deteriorated. (3) ESV had continued to decrease. The ESV provided by the regulating service function was the largest, accounting for over 49% of the total ESV. Support service function was second, accounting for over 34%. (4) The total ESV had a strong negative correlation with Shannon's diversity index (SHDI) and Shannon's evenness index(SHEI), a significant positive correlation with Contagion index (CONTAG). (5)The Human Activity Index (HAI) had a significant impact on changes in ESV, with an influence value of 0.6192, and its synergistic effect with NDVI further enhances this impact, achieving a synergy score of 0.71. Additionally, natural factors such as topography and climate also had significant effects on ESV changes.This study provides an evidence-based theoretical reference to guide the enhancement of the natural environment of the FRB and maintain highquality development of regional landscapes.

Driving the Evolution of Land Use Patterns: The Impact of Urban Agglomeration Construction Land in the Yangtze River Delta, China

The rapid increase in population and economic activities has greatly influenced land use and spatial development. In urban agglomerations where socioeconomic activities are densely concentrated, the clash between ecological protection and economic growth is becoming more evident. Therefore, a thorough quantitative assessment of spatial changes driven by land use dynamics, alongside an examination of temporal and spatial driving factors, is crucial in offering scientific backing for the long-term and sustainable growth of urban agglomerations. This paper focuses on the major urban agglomerations in China’s Yangtze River Delta region, examining the spatiotemporal evolution of land use and landscape patterns from 2000 to 2020. By employing the standard deviation ellipse technique, coupled with multiple linear regression and the geographical detector model, we conduct a quantitative assessment of the directional trends in urban construction land expansion as well as the diverse impacts of temporal and spatial factors on this expansion across various periods and regions. The findings indicate that over the past 20 years, construction land in the Yangtze River Delta Urban Agglomeration expanded in concentrated patches, showing significant scale effects with relatively intact farmland and forest land being increasingly encroached upon. Landscape-type transitions predominantly occurred in cities around Taihu Lake and Hangzhou Bay, with the most significant transition being farmland converted to construction land, resulting in a greater number of patches and more pronounced land fragmentation. Throughout the 20 years, the standard deviation ellipse of construction land in the Yangtze River Delta Urban Agglomeration expanded and shifted, with the predominant expansion trending from the northwest toward the southeast, and the EN orientation being the most intense expansion area, covering 1641.24 km2. The influence of temporal and spatial driving factors on the expansion of urban construction land differed across various periods and regions. This study thoroughly examines the driving factors that affect the evolution of urban construction land in the region, offering valuable scientific evidence and references for future planning and development of the Yangtze River Delta Urban Agglomeration, aiding in the formulation of more precise and efficient urban management and land use strategies.

Using surface runoff to reveal the mechanisms of landscape patterns driving on various forms of nitrogen in non-point source pollution

Non-point source (NPS) pollution directly threatens river water quality, constrains sustainable economic development, and poses hazards to human health. Comprehension of the impact factors on NPS pollution is essential for scientific river water quality management. Despite the landscape pattern being considered to have a significant impact on NPS pollution, the driving mechanism of landscape patterns on NPS pollution remains unclear. Therefore, this study coupled multi-models including the Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT), Random Forest, and Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) to construct the connection between landscape patterns, NPS pollution, and surface runoff. The results suggested that increased runoff during the wet season enhances the link between landscape patterns and NPS pollution, and the explained NPS pollution variation by landscape pattern increased from 59.6 % (dry season) to 84.9 % (wet season). Furthermore, from the impact pathways, we find that the sink landscape pattern can significantly and indirectly influence NPS pollution by regulating surface runoff during the wet season (0.301*). Meanwhile, the sink and source landscape patterns significantly and directly impact NPS pollution during different seasons. Moreover, we further find that the percentage of paddy land use (Pad_PLAND) and grassland patch density (Gra_PD) metrics can significantly predict the dissolved total nitrogen (DTN) and nitrate nitrogen (NO3−-N) variation. Thus, controlling the runoff migration process by guiding the rational evolution of watershed landscape patterns is an important development direction for watershed NPS pollution management.

Spatial and Temporal Changes in Land Use and Landscape Pattern Evolution in the Economic Belt of the Northern Slope of the Tianshan Mountains in China

Spatial and Temporal Changes in Land Use and Landscape Pattern Evolution in the Economic Belt of the Northern Slope of the Tianshan Mountains in China

Progress in Ecosystem Services Research Under the Evolution of Land Use Landscape Patterns

Land use change (LUUC) is the most intuitive reflection of human activities and a key driver causing changes in ecosystem types and landscape pattern evolution [162]. Changes in land use patterns, structure, composition, intensity, and spatial patterns due to natural and anthropogenic factors affect ecosystem processes such as species movement, soil erosion, and patterns of biodiversity distribution, which in turn affect a wide range of ecosystem services, such as food provisioning, flood storage, soil retention, and soil and water conservation, and ultimately affect human well-being. Most studies have shown that changes in land use landscape patterns affect ecosystem services through multiple pathways, including changes in biodiversity, ecosystem processes and habitats. Land use change and ecosystem services have a reciprocal relationship, and the evolution of land use landscape pattern will directly affect or change the structure and function of ecosystems, which ultimately affects ecosystem services, while the results of the ecosystem services assessment can also provide a scientific basis for the formulation of relevant policies. Therefore, understanding the relationship between the evolution of land-use landscape patterns and the response of ecosystem services can not only clearly reveal the process of land-use landscape evolution, but also more accurately assess the function of ecosystem services, which can promote the scientific formulation and effective implementation of relevant planning and protection policies.

The impact mechanism of human activities on the evolution of coastal wetlands in the Liaohe River Delta

IntroductionThis study aims to investigate the impact of human activities on the evolution of coastal wetlands in the Liaohe River Delta. Understanding these impacts is crucial for the management, protection, and sustainable development of the ecological environment in the region.MethodsQuantitative analysis of the evolution of coastal wetlands along the Liaohe River from 1995 to 2020 using Landsat series remote sensing images. This study examines the changes in different landscapes and explores the impact of human activities on wetlands through methods such as land transfer matrix, landscape pattern index, and human activity hotspots.ResultsThe results show that the area of coastal wetlands in the Liaohe River Delta exhibited a fluctuating downward trend from 1995 to 2020. The eastern and western parts of the delta experienced greater disturbance to wetland landscapes due to human activities, while the northern and southern parts were mostly waters and reed lands with a smaller degree of human disturbance. Human activities have led to significant changes in farmland, ponds, rice paddies, construction land, and reed fields, thereby promoting the evolution of coastal wetlands.DiscussionThis article discusses the characteristics of landscape pattern evolution in the study area, as well as the impact of human interference, economy, policies, and other factors on it, and compares it with the evolution patterns of other coastal wetlands in China. The changes in the landscape pattern of the study area are mainly reflected in the reduction and fragmentation of natural wetland areas, which are closely related to human activities, especially the development of construction and agriculture. The main economic manifestation is that the increase in land demand due to economic and urban development has led to the transformation of natural wetlands into construction land and other artificial landscapes. The implementation of regulations such as the Wetland Protection Law has contributed to the rational use and ecological restoration of wetlands, and also reflects the influence of policy factors. Compared with other studies, coastal wetlands in China generally face issues of degradation and loss, mainly caused by human activities, but also affected by natural factors such as rising sea levels, changes in coastlines, and climate change.

Analysis of Landscape Pattern Evolution and Impact Factors in the Mainstream Basin of the Tarim River from 1980 to 2020

The mainstream basin of the Tarim River serves as a vital ecological security barrier that prevents the merging and expansion of deserts and an important strategic corridor directly linking Qinghai and Xinjiang. With society’s development and climate change, ecological issues such as river interruption, vegetation degradation, and land desertification in the basin have notably intensified, and the ecological security is facing a critical test. Exploring the characteristics of landscape changes and their driving factors within the basin is crucial in improving the ecological environment system’s management. Based on land use data from 1980 to 2020, this study analyzed the characteristics of the spatiotemporal changes and pattern evolution of the landscape through a landscape transfer matrix and landscape pattern indices. It further revealed the impact factors of the landscape pattern through canonical correspondence analysis. The results showed that (1) in 1980–2020, the areas of desert, forest, farmland, and settlement landscapes increased, while the area of grassland landscape decreased, and the water landscape showed an “increasing–decreasing–recovery” pattern. The landscape transition types mainly included the transition from grassland to desert; mutual transitions among farmland, grassland, and forests; mutual transitions between water and grassland; and the transition from farmland to settlements. (2) The overall landscape pattern demonstrated increased fragmentation, shape complexity, and evenness with decreased aggregation. Furthermore, different landscapes exhibited distinct characteristics of landscape pattern changes; for instance, grassland landscape showed severe fragmentation, while desert landscape displayed the strongest dominance. (3) The landscape pattern was a result of the combined impact of natural and human factors, with the soil thickness (SOT), road density (ROD), annual actual evapotranspiration (AAE), population density (POD), and mean annual temperature (MAT) exhibiting significant influences. Specifically, the settlement and farmland landscapes were mainly influenced by the mean annual relative humidity (MAH), POD, GDP density (GDP), and distance to artificial water (DAW); the forest, grassland, and water landscapes were mainly influenced by the SOT, soil organic matter content (SOM), AAE, ROD, elevation (ELE), MAT, slope (SLP), and distance to natural water (DNW); and the desert landscape was mainly influenced by the DAW, DNW, SLP, AAE, SOT, SOM, and ROD. These findings can provide a scientific reference for landscape management and restoration, as well as sustainable social and economic development, in the mainstream basin of the Tarim River.

Spatiotemporal evolution of landscape stability in World Heritage Karst Sites: a case study of Shibing Karst and Libo-Huanjiang Karst

Landscape stability is a paramount concern within the field of landscape ecology. Indices of landscape patterns not only facilitate an effective analysis of land use transformations but also delve into the mechanisms of landscape disturbances across various spatial and temporal dimensions. Utilizing land use data spanning from 2014 to 2022 for the Shibing and Libo-Huanjiang South China Karst (SCK) World Heritage Sites (WHSs), this study delves into the landscape dynamics of these areas over the past 8 years. This investigation employs landscape pattern indices and a moving window technique to construct a landscape stability evaluation model, incorporating indices such as the Contagion Index, Patch Density, and Total Edge Contrast. Moreover, the study employs Moran's I, a spatial autocorrelation index, to scrutinize the shifts in geographical heterogeneity of landscape stability within the said period. The findings reveal: (1) Between 2014 and 2022, the landscape patterns of the Shibing and Libo-Huanjiang WHSs have undergone significant transformations, with Woodland emerging as the predominant landscape type and its area exhibiting an upward trend in recent years. (2) The level of fragmentation within the research area has decreased, landscape diversity has diminished, and the aggregation index has risen, according to the landscape pattern indices from 2014 to 2022, indicating that conservation measures have significantly influenced the evolution of landscape patterns. (3) Throughout most of the study period, landscape stability predominantly remained at a relatively stable level, albeit with noticeable fluctuations in years heavily impacted by human activities. (4) The areas of high-high agglomeration and the hotspots of the heritage sites were primarily concentrated within the core zones of these sites, suggesting focused areas of conservation and landscape integrity.

Landscape Pattern Changes of Aquatic Vegetation Communities and Their Response to Hydrological Processes in Poyang Lake, China

Hydrology is an important environmental factor for the evolution of wetland landscape patterns. In the past 20 years, Poyang Lake, the largest freshwater lake in China, has experienced significant inundation shrinkage and water level decrease, posing a significant threat to the local vegetation community. To explore the potential relationship between aquatic vegetation and hydrological processes in the recent hydrological situation, in this study, the landscape patterns of aquatic vegetation communities in Poyang Lake were studied using time-series Landsat remote sensing images and a support vector machine classifier. The stepwise regression analysis method was adopted to analyze the relationship between the vegetation area and hydrological factors. The results indicated that the area of submerged and emergent vegetation in the entire lake decreased significantly from 2001 to 2017, whereas the area of moist vegetation showed a remarkably increasing trend. The average distribution elevation of the submerged vegetation increased by 0.06 m per year. The corresponding landscape patterns showed that the degree of fragmentation of aquatic vegetation communities in Poyang Lake increased. Several hydrological factors were selected to quantify the potential impact of water level fluctuations. The correlation analysis results indicated that hydrological conditions during the rising- and high-water periods may be the key factors affecting the area of aquatic vegetation. This study systematically investigated the evolution of vegetation communities in Poyang Lake wetlands over the past two decades, which contributes to the protection and management of this unique ecosystem.

Landscape Analysis and Ecological Risk Assessment during 1995–2020 Based on Land Utilization/Land Coverage (LULC) and Random Forest: A Case Study of the Fushun Open-Pit Coal Area in Liaoning, China

China’s Fushun open-pit mine is the largest century-old coal mine in Asia. Large-scale mining and the use of coal has caused dramatic changes in the regional urban landscape pattern, seriously affecting the ecological function and ecosystem stability of its surrounding landscape. Evaluating the ecological risks of the landscape in the urban areas of open-pit mines contributes to the risk management of regional ecosystems and the sustainable development of society. This study selected six-phase Landsat ETM/OLI remote sensing images from 1995 to 2020 and combined them with the random forest model to carry out an LULC classification of the open-pit mine and its surrounding areas and, on this basis, discusses the evolution of its landscape pattern and evaluates the ecological risks. It fills the gap in the research on the evolution of regional landscape patterns and ecological risks in the study area and improves the automatic classification efficiency of LULC for use in open-pit mines. The results show that the classification accuracy of LULC regarding open-pit mines based on image pixels and the random forest model can reach 30 m, and the rate of accuracy can reach 92–97%. From 1995 to 2020, the coverage area of forest land and building land in the study area has increased and is mainly composed of grassland and undeveloped land. The use of land was transferred to the mining area, the water body area maintained a relative dynamic balance, and the overall vegetation coverage of the mining area was greatly improved; the forest land began to expand from the surrounding area to the mining area in 2010, and the construction land began to move from the areas surrounding the mining area to the surrounding valleys in 2015. The landforms have extended radially, and the landscape sprawl index has increased, indicating the optimization of the ecological environment; the high- and medium-risk areas decreased by 75.51 km2, the low-risk areas expanded by 461.48 km2, and the overall ecological risk index decreased. From this, it is possible to conclude that the landscape restoration project adopted in the study area has achieved great results, and the improvement of the ecological environment also directly affects the increase of construction land. These research results can provide scientific guidance for the rational utilization and sustainable development of land resources in urban areas of open-pit mines.

Spatio-temporal changes and hydrological forces of wetland landscape pattern in the Yellow River Delta during 1986–2022

ContextEstuarine wetlands provide valuable ecosystem services, but 20–78% of coastal wetlands are facing the risk of loss by the end of the century. The Yellow River Delta (YRD) wetland, one of the most productive delta areas in the world, has undergone dramatic changes under the influence of a precipitous drop of sediment delivery and runoff, coupled with the invasion of Spartina alterniflora. Monitoring the spatio-temporal patterns, thresholds, and drivers of change in wetland landscapes is critical for sustainable management of delta wetlands.ObjectivesGenerate annual mapping of salt marsh vegetation in the YRD wetland from 1986 to 2022, analyze the trends of wetland patch area and landscape pattern, and explain the hydrological drivers of landscape pattern evolution.MethodsWe combined Landsat 5‒8 and Sentinel-2 images, vegetation phenology, remote sensing indices, and Random Forest supervised classification to map the typical salt marsh vegetation of the YRD. We applied piecewise linear regression to analyze YRD wetland changes and stepwise multiple linear regression to assess the impact of hydrological factors on landscape pattern.ResultsWe identified three stages of landscape pattern evolution with 1997 and 2009 as critical junctures, including the rapid expansion stage, gradual decline stage, and bio-invasion stage. In the rapid expansion stage, the wetland area expanded by 70%, while the typical salt marsh vegetation (Phragmites australis) area was reduced by 25%. In the gradual decline stage, the wetland was reduced by 21% and the Phragmites australis area was reduced by 16%. In the bio-invasion stage, coverage of Spartina alterniflora expanded rapidly, with a 68-fold increase in area relative to 2009, expanding at an average rate of 344 hm2 per year.ConclusionsAreas of total wetland, tidal flat, and Phragmites australis were significantly influenced by cumulative sediment delivery and cumulative runoff, which together explained 61.5%, 75.7% and 63.8% of their variation, respectively. Wetland and tidal flat areas increased with cumulative sediment delivery, while cumulative runoff had a weak negative effect. For Phragmites australis, cumulative runoff had a positive effect, whereas cumulative sediment delivery had a negative effect. Water resources regulation measures should be taken to prevent the degradation of wetland ecosystems, and intervention measures can be implemented during the seedling stage to control the invasion of Spartina alterniflora.

Construction and optimization of ecological network based on morphological spatial pattern analysis and minimum cumulative resistance models in Haihe River basin

AbstractIn recent years, landscape fragmentation has become increasingly serious due to the impact of human activities. The ecological network can ensure the ecological function of the region through linearly connecting ecological corridors and effectively solving the problem of landscape fragmentation that occurs in the evolution of landscape patterns. Based on MSPA and MCR models, the article analyses the distribution and changes of landscape types in the Haihe River basin and constructs an ecological network in the study area by combining the local ecological characteristics of the basin. The network structure is optimized in the end by selecting three large stepping stones, constructing 69 internal ecological stepping stones, identifying 212 fracture points, and adding seven ecological corridors to build a point–line surface network structure with an internal and external double‐loop structure. The connectivity of the network structure is evaluated by using complex network method. It is calculated that the network connectivity performance is improved by 13.95% after optimization, which means the species exchange in the study area is closer.

Landscape evolution in China’s key ecological function zones during 1990–2015

Landscape evolution has profound effects on ecosystems. Recently, some studies suggest that China has implemented plans leading in the greening of the world by mainly describing the changes based on satellite data. However, few studies have analyzed the policy effect on ecosystem improvement from the perspective of landscape pattern evolution. Among the numerous ecological policy plans, China’s key ecological function zones plan is an important one. In this study, we focus on depicting the long-term and large-scale landscape evolution in China’s key ecological function zones, which are accounting for 40.2% of China’s land area, and include four-type ecoregions where ecosystems are fragile or important, to comprehensively explore the environmental influences of policy planning. For this purpose, we first described the landscape composition changes and conversion mechanisms in China’s key ecological function zones from 1990 to 2015. Then we captured the detailed pattern evolution characteristics by landscape indices. The results show that these ecoregions were mostly evolving in an unfavorable direction in these 25 years, i.e. destruction of habitats and increment of fragmentation. Although greening areas increased based on other recent researches, the landscape pattern became worse, indicating it is necessary for the detailed analysis of landscape ecology and more accurate ecological planning. We also found the deterioration of the ecological environment had been uncharacteristically stopped or even improved in wind prevention and sand fixation ecoregions and biodiversity maintenance ecoregions after the implementation of this plan. Furthermore, we assumed that the policy is more prominent in these prohibiting sabotages and protecting areas with fragile ecological bases, which may be caused by the differentiated transfer payments in different ecoregions. Finally, some planning suggestions, such as stricter land use control, the regional balance of ecological transfer payments and deepening of ecological migration policies, etc., were proposed for promoting better future environmental changes.

The spatial response of carbon storage to territorial space composition and landscape pattern changes: A case study of the Fujian Delta urban agglomeration, China.

Understanding the impact mechanisms of territorial space composition and landscape pattern changes on carbon storage is critical to balance the development and utilization of territorial space and the conservation of the ecosystem. Thus, taking the Fujian Delta urban agglomeration (FDUA) of China as an example, this paper analyzed the impact of the transference in territorial space composition and the change in the coupling coordination degree (CCD) of landscape patterns on carbon storage based on the urban-rural gradient and grid scales. Results illustrated that the areas of agricultural, green, and blue spaces continued to decline, while the intensity of economic space expansion increased from 20.86 to 42.45% during 2000-2020. The grids with CCD change of landscape patterns declined mainly (accounting for 64.31%) in the first decade and rose mainly (accounting for 76.79%) in the second decade. The carbon loss of each under rural gradient was gradually serious. The percentage of grids with moderate and significant decrease in carbon storage escalated from 27.83 to 70.21%. Additionally, grids experiencing high carbon loss moved from the northeast coast to the southwest inland. The response of carbon storage change showed that the expansion of agricultural space occupied by economic space played a crucial role in the carbon loss in each urban-rural gradient. The carbon loss caused by supplementing agricultural space with green space increased from the urban to the field. Enhancing the CCD of landscape patterns can boost carbon storage, and the scattering expansion of economic space needs to be avoided. This paper provides a novel perspective to explore the spatial response of carbon storage change to the territorial space composition and landscape pattern evolution, which is important to optimize the territorial space pattern and improve the regional carbon sink capacity.