Effects of vegetation phenology on vegetation productivity in the Qinghai Lake Basin of the Northeastern Qinghai–Tibet Plateau

<p>Understanding the paleoenvironment (such as climate and landscape) in the area where the early ancient human appears on the Tibetan Plateau is an interesting topic. Based on the results of pollen data on the Yaowuyao loess section of the Qinghai Lake Basin, we used landscape reconstruction algorithms to reconstruct the changes in vegetation cover for 15,000 years. It is shown that the vegetation in the Yaowuyao area changed from temperate steppe (15-7.5 ka) to forest-steppe (7.5-4 ka). Compared with previous studies on the sediment in Qinghai Lake, our study can better reflect the local environment of the Qinghai Lake basin. Furthermore, based on the paleoclimate change data and archeological data from the surrounding areas, it is noticed that while precipitation increases and trees increase, human activities decrease. This may be caused by the substance and strategies of the ancient human beings that have adapted to the steppe. In addition, our results also show that the intensity of ancient human activity has a negative correlation with plant biodiversity, which may be related to human disturbance to the environment. Our paleoecological and environmental study not only shows the paleoenvironment of the early human activities on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau but also revealed possible early human activity signals.</p>

Download Full-text

Evolution and Prediction of Landscape Patterns in the Qinghai Lake Basin

Land ◽

10.3390/land10090921 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 10 (9) ◽

pp. 921

Author(s):

Yanli Han ◽

Deyong Yu ◽

Kelong Chen

Keyword(s):

Spatial Distribution ◽

Global Climate ◽

Ecological Factors ◽

Tourism Industry ◽

Landscape Patterns ◽

Tibet Plateau ◽

Ecological Environment ◽

Qinghai Lake ◽

Lake Basin ◽

Qinghai Lake Basin

The Qinghai Lake Basin (QLB), located in the northeastern part of the Qinghai–Tibet Plateau, has a fragile ecological environment and is sensitive to global climate change. With the progress of societal and economic development, the tourism industry in the QLB has also developed rapidly, which is bound to result in great changes in landscape patterns. In this study, we first analyzed the change characteristics of landscape patterns in the QLB from 1990 to 2018, and we then used the Markov model and the future land use simulation (FLUS) model, combined with natural, social, and ecological factors, to predict the changes in the number and spatial distribution of landscape patterns in the period between 2026 and 2034. The results of the study show that desert areas have been greatly reduced and transformed into grasslands. The grassland area expanded from 49.22% in 1990 to 59.45% in 2018, corresponding to an increase of 10.23%. The direct cause of this result is the combined effects of natural and man-made factors, with the latter playing a leading role. As such, government decision-making is crucial. Lastly, we simulated the landscape patterns in the period from 2018 to 2034. The results show that in the next 16 years, the proportion of various landscapes will change little, and the spatial distribution will be stable. This research provides a reference for the formulation of ecological environment management and protection policies in the QLB.

Download Full-text