Characteristics of Vegetation Change and Its Climatic and Anthropogenic Driven Pattern in the Qilian Mountains

Abstract

The Qilian Mountains (QLM) are an essential ecological security barrier in northwest China. Identifying the driven pattern of vegetation change is crucial for ecological protection and restoration in the QLM. Based on high-resolution vegetation coverage (VC) data in the QLM from 1990 to 2018, linear trend analysis was employed to examine the spatiotemporal dynamics of VC in the QLM, while correlation analysis was utilized to establish relationships between VC change and environmental factors. Multiple correlation analysis and residual analysis were adopted to recognize the climatically and anthropogenically driven pattern of VC change. The results showed that VC in the QLM presented a remarkable upward trend in volatility from 1990 to 2018. The significant increase areas accounted for 59.32% of the total, mainly distributed in the central and western QLM, and the significant decrease areas accounted for 9.18%, mostly located in the middle and eastern QLM. VC change showed a significant positive correlation with precipitation change and annual average temperature, while it exhibited a significant negative correlation with annual average precipitation, current VC status, livestock density, and slope. Climate change played a leading role in the increase of VC, and the impact of precipitation was significantly higher than that of temperature. Affected by climate change, the VC of alpine steppes and temperate steppes increased the most. Under the human interference, VC decreased significantly in 9.2% of the region, of which shrubs fell the most, followed by alpine meadows and forests. This study can provide certain guidance for local ecological protection and restoration efforts.

The Ecological Management and Sustainable Development of Forests

“…At the macro-scale, this Special Issue discusses three aspects of forest ecosystem characteristics and management, i.e., characteristic identification [5][6][7][8], mechanism analysis [9][10][11], and optimization management [12].…”

“…The authors suggested that ecological restoration projects enhanced the main ecological function of individual regions, and conducted a detailed analysis of the impacts of the "Grain for Green" project. Wen et al (2023) [6] proposed a three-step approach to explore the multi-aspect dynamics of land change, including the differences among land-use categories, spatial characteristics of urban expansion, and forest fragmentation, and explored characteristics of land-use change in a low-income mountainous city (Enshi City, China). The findings confirmed that recent planning measures were effective in restoring the natural environment, and that the identified key areas can support sustainable forest management during urban growth.…”

“…Clarifying systemic mechanisms is conducive to understanding the relationships between forest ecosystems and other related systems, and more comprehensively and accurately identifying the key aspects of forests. Teng et al (2023) [9] analyzed the characteristics of vegetation coverage (VC) change based on high-resolution remote sensing data in the Qilian Mountains (QLM) and identified the climatically and anthropogenically driven pattern of VC change. They found that VC presented a remarkable upward trend from 1990 to 2018 and identified a significant positive correlation with precipitation change and annual average temperature, as well as a significant negative correlation with annual average precipitation, current VC status, livestock density, and slope.…”