Research hotspot and trend of plant water use in karst: A bibliometric analysis from 1984 to 2022

Abstract

Research on the ecohydrological processes of terrestrial plants is a frontier field comprising ecology, hydrology and global change research, yielding the key theoretical foundations of ecohydrology. The basic characteristics of the inorganic environment in a karst ecosystem are a lack of water, a lower amount of soil and high amounts of calcium. Vegetation growing in karst areas has certain particularities and a greater degree of complexity compared with other ecosystems. To comprehensively and intuitively understand the current progress and development trends in plant water use research focusing on karst areas, this paper uses the VOSviewer software to analyze the literature on plant water use in karst areas between 1984 and 2022. The results show that: (1) Research on plant water use in karsts has developed rapidly worldwide, and the number of relevant studies in the literature has increased year by year, which together means that it is attracting more and more attention. (2) Research on plant water sources, the geological background of karst areas, seasonal arid tropical climates, the relationship between δ13C values and plant water use efficiency, karst plant water use in karst savannas and subtropical areas, and ecosystems under climate change yields the knowledge base in this field. (3) Most studies in this area focus on the division of water sources of plants in karst areas, the methods of studying the water use sources of plants, and the water use strategies and efficiency of plants. (4) The functional response of plant water use in karst areas to the influence of the Earth's critical zones, the impact of climate change on plant water use in karst areas, the phenomenon of ecohydrological separation in karst areas, and explorations at the community scale and in the spatial dimension will be the focus of future research. These studies will provide key scientific basis for guiding ecological restoration in karst areas and promoting regional sustainable development and are important research directions in the future.