Recent changes in wetlands on the Tibetan Plateau: A review

Abstract

About 80% of global wetland resources are degrading or disappearing; thus the wetland ecosystem has become one of the most seriously threatened ecosystems in the world. As an area sensitive to global changes and acting as a security barrier for the Asian ecosystem, the Tibetan Plateau has about 13.19×10 4 km 2 of wetlands of special significance within China. With the increasing application of remote sensing technology to wetland research, Tibetan Plateau wetland research has entered a period of rapid development. This paper summarizes the remote sensing research literature of the Tibetan Plateau wetlands from 1992 to 2014, and is intended to provide references for future research into the wetlands of the Tibetan Plateau. We have reviewed monitoring methods, research topics, and existing problems. Our review has revealed the following characteristics: (1) Over the past 40 years, the research paradigm of the Tibetan Plateau wetlands has undergone dynamic changes in the monitoring of wetland areas, landscape patterns and the eco-environment based on remote sensing technology. Attention has also been focused on constructing models with an ecological system perspective and analyzing three patterns of change trends within the Tibetan Plateau wetlands. (2) The results of Tibetan Plateau wetland research based on remote sensing were as follows: (a) between 1970 and 2006, the Tibetan Plateau wetland area decreased overall at a rate of 0.23%/a, and the landscape diversity declined at a rate of 0.17%/a; (b) by contrast, between 1976 and 2009, the lake area of the inland river basins in the Tibetan Plateau increased at a rate of 0.83%/a; and (c) the change trend in the Tibetan Plateau wetlands was controlled by climate change. Current problems relating to remote sensing (RS)-based research in the Tibetan Plateau wetlands are computer interpretation accuracy and the processing precision of cloud removal, and the lack of a comprehensive 880 Journal of Geographical Sciences overview of the Tibetan Plateau wetland system. Finally, based on the review, some key activities for future study have been proposed, as follows: (1) Strengthening the integration of the Tibetan Plateau wetland research with remote sensing research; (2) discussing the response and adaptation mechanisms of the Tibetan Plateau wetland ecosystem within the context of global change; (3) strengthening the integration of remote sensing (RS), geographic information system (GIS), and global positioning system (GPS), and promoting the construction of a Tibetan Plateau wetland information platform.

Analysis of Precipitation Extremes in the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau, China: Spatio-Temporal Characteristics and Topography Effects

“…The QTP is also referred to as the largest high-altitude inland lake area in the word, having more than 1000 lakes greater than 1 km 2 in area [36]. More than 13 × 10 4 km 2 of wetland area is distributed across the plateau, also making this area one of the most important wetland ecosystem areas in China [37]. …”

Ecological Risk Assessment and Impact Factor Analysis of Alpine Wetland Ecosystem Based on LUCC and Boosted Regression Tree on the Zoige Plateau, China

“…These ecosystems play an important role in regulating the regional climate, maintaining the ecological balance and protecting biodiversity [2,3]. In the past 30 years, the alpine wetland area on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau has decreased by 2970.31 km 2 because of the impacts of urbanization, dramatically increasing population and global climate change [4,5]. As an unique ecosystem type, the alpine wetlands ecosystems on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau are facing a serious crisis of shrinkage and degradation.…”

Experimental Warming Aggravates Degradation‐Induced Topsoil Drought in Alpine Meadows of the Qinghai–Tibetan Plateau

“…In the southern QTP, climatic warming has caused a glacial retreat and accordingly increased liquid water area and mass (Yao et al, 2012). However, the wetlands and most lakes have experienced shrinkage in the eastern QTP since the early 1970s (Huang et al, 2011;Zhao et al, 2015). Climatic warming-induced thickening of the active layer of permafrost and drought have been considered to be the leading causes of surface water decline (Wang et al, 2009).…”

“…The increasing ALT facilitated the percolation of additional water to deeper soil layers, thus resulting in the reallocation of soil moisture and causing drought in the root zone (Guo et al, 2012;Wang et al, 2006;Wang et al, 2009;Xue et al, 2015). Near-surface drought progressively caused the shrinkage of wetland and lakes, as well as alpine meadow degradation (Huang et al, 2011;Sun et al, 2013;Xue et al, 2009;Zhao et al, 2015).…”