Spatiotemporal Change of Vegetation Coverage and its Relationship with Climate Change in Freshwater Marshes of Northeast China

Human pressure on the environment and climate change are two important factors contributing to species decline and overall loss of biodiversity. Orchids may be particularly vulnerable to human-induced losses of habitat and the pervasive impact of global climate change. In this study, we simulated the extent of the suitable habitat of three species of the terrestrial orchid genus Cypripedium in northeast China and assessed the impact of human pressure and climate change on the future distribution of these species. Cypripedium represents a genus of long-lived terrestrial orchids that contains several species with great ornamental value. Severe habitat destruction and overcollection have led to major population declines in recent decades. Our results showed that at present the most suitable habitats of the three species can be found in Da Xing’an Ling, Xiao Xing’an Ling and in the Changbai Mountains. Human activity was predicted to have the largest impact on species distributions in the Changbai Mountains. In addition, climate change was predicted to lead to a shift in distribution towards higher elevations and to an increased fragmentation of suitable habitats of the three investigated Cypripedium species in the study area. These results will be valuable for decision makers to identify areas that are likely to maintain viable Cypripedium populations in the future and to develop conservation strategies to protect the remaining populations of these enigmatic orchid species.

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Quantifying the Responses of Evapotranspiration and Its Components to Vegetation Restoration and Climate Change on the Loess Plateau of China

Remote Sensing ◽

10.3390/rs13122358 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 13 (12) ◽

pp. 2358

Author(s):

Linjing Qiu ◽

Yiping Wu ◽

Zhaoyang Shi ◽

Yuting Chen ◽

Fubo Zhao

Keyword(s):

Climate Change ◽

Loess Plateau ◽

Dominant Role ◽

Vegetation Restoration ◽

Vegetation Coverage ◽

Ecological Planning ◽

The Loess Plateau ◽

Canopy Interception ◽

Community Land Model ◽

Spatiotemporal Trends

Quantitatively identifying the influences of vegetation restoration (VR) on water resources is crucial to ecological planning. Although vegetation coverage has improved on the Loess Plateau (LP) of China since the implementation of VR policy, the way vegetation dynamics influences regional evapotranspiration (ET) remains controversial. In this study, we first investigate long-term spatiotemporal trends of total ET (TET) components, including ground evaporation (GE) and canopy ET (CET, sum of canopy interception and canopy transpiration) based on the GLEAM-ET dataset. The ET changes are attributed to VR on the LP from 2000 to 2015 and these results are quantitatively evaluated here using the Community Land Model (CLM). Finally, the relative contributions of VR and climate change to ET are identified by combining climate scenarios and VR scenarios. The results show that the positive effect of VR on CET is offset by the negative effect of VR on GE, which results in a weak variation in TET at an annual scale and an increased TET is only shown in summer. Regardless of the representative concentration pathway (RCP4.5 or RCP8.5), differences resulted from the responses of TET to different vegetation conditions ranging from −3.7 to −1.2 mm, while climate change from RCP4.5 to RCP8.5 caused an increase in TET ranging from 0.1 to 65.3 mm. These findings imply that climate change might play a dominant role in ET variability on the LP, and this work emphasizes the importance of comprehensively considering the interactions among climate factors to assess the relative contributions of VR and climate change to ET.

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Cultivar selection can increase yield potential and resource use efficiency of spring maize to adapt to climate change in Northeast China

Journal of Integrative Agriculture ◽

10.1016/s2095-3119(20)63359-7 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 20 (2) ◽

pp. 371-382 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Zheng-e SU ◽

Zhi-juan LIU ◽

Fan BAI ◽

Zhen-tao ZHANG ◽

Shuang SUN ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Climate Change ◽

Resource Use ◽

Northeast China ◽

Yield Potential ◽

Resource Use Efficiency ◽

Cultivar Selection ◽

Spring Maize ◽

Use Efficiency

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Short-term response of CO2 emissions to various leaf litters: a case study from freshwater marshes of Northeast China

Wetlands Ecology and Management ◽

10.1007/s11273-016-9506-y ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 25 (1) ◽

pp. 119-128

Author(s):

Chao Gong ◽

Changchun Song ◽

Xinhou Zhang ◽

Wenwen Tan ◽

Tianhua Qiao

Keyword(s):

Co2 Emissions ◽

Northeast China ◽

Short Term ◽

Freshwater Marshes ◽

Term Response

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Effects of Forest Changes on Summer Surface Temperature in Changbai Mountain, China

Forests ◽

10.3390/f12111551 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 12 (11) ◽

pp. 1551

Author(s):

Jiaqi Zhang ◽

Xiangjin Shen ◽

Yanji Wang ◽

Ming Jiang ◽

Xianguo Lu

Keyword(s):

Climate Change ◽

Surface Temperature ◽

Land Surface ◽

Climate Models ◽

Regional Climate ◽

Changbai Mountain ◽

Vegetation Coverage ◽

Area Index ◽

Forest Coverage ◽

Cooling Effects

The area and vegetation coverage of forests in Changbai Mountain of China have changed significantly during the past decades. Understanding the effects of forests and forest coverage change on regional climate is important for predicting climate change in Changbai Mountain. Based on the satellite-derived land surface temperature (LST), albedo, evapotranspiration, leaf area index, and land-use data, this study analyzed the influences of forests and forest coverage changes on summer LST in Changbai Mountain. Results showed that the area and vegetation coverage of forests increased in Changbai Mountain from 2003 to 2017. Compared with open land, forests could decrease the summer daytime LST (LSTD) and nighttime LST (LSTN) by 1.10 °C and 0.07 °C, respectively. The increase in forest coverage could decrease the summer LSTD and LSTN by 0.66 °C and 0.04 °C, respectively. The forests and increasing forest coverage had cooling effects on summer temperature, mainly by decreasing daytime temperature in Changbai Mountain. The daytime cooling effect is mainly related to the increased latent heat flux caused by increasing evapotranspiration. Our results suggest that the effects of forest coverage change on climate should be considered in climate models for accurately simulating regional climate change in Changbai Mountain of China.

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Monitoring Changes to Arctic Vegetation and Glaciers at Ny-Ålesund, Svalbard, Based on Time Series Remote Sensing

Remote Sensing ◽

10.3390/rs13193845 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 13 (19) ◽

pp. 3845

Author(s):

Guangbo Ren ◽

Jianbu Wang ◽

Yunfei Lu ◽

Peiqiang Wu ◽

Xiaoqing Lu ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Climate Change ◽

Remote Sensing ◽

Time Series ◽

High Latitude ◽

Global Climate ◽

Meteorological Data ◽

Remote Sensing Data ◽

Vegetation Coverage ◽

Coastal Regions ◽

Average Annual Temperature

Climate change has profoundly affected global ecological security. The most vulnerable region on Earth is the high-latitude Arctic. Identifying the changes in vegetation coverage and glaciers in high-latitude Arctic coastal regions is important for understanding the process and impact of global climate change. Ny-Ålesund, the northern-most human settlement, is typical of these coastal regions and was used as a study site. Vegetation and glacier changes over the past 35 years were studied using time series remote sensing data from Landsat 5/7/8 acquired in 1985, 1989, 2000, 2011, 2015 and 2019. Site survey data in 2019, a digital elevation model from 2009 and meteorological data observed from 1985 to 2019 were also used. The vegetation in the Ny-Ålesund coastal zone showed a trend of declining and then increasing, with a breaking point in 2000. However, the area of vegetation with coverage greater than 30% increased over the whole study period, and the wetland moss area also increased, which may be caused by the accelerated melting of glaciers. Human activities were responsible for the decline in vegetation cover around Ny-Ålesund owing to the construction of the town and airport. Even in areas with vegetation coverage of only 13%, there were at least five species of high-latitude plants. The melting rate of five major glaciers in the study area accelerated, and approximately 82% of the reduction in glacier area occurred after 2000. The elevation of the lowest boundary of the five glaciers increased by 50–70 m. The increase in precipitation and the average annual temperature after 2000 explains the changes in both vegetation coverage and glaciers in the study period.

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Open areas in patchy ecosystems: key spaces for vegetation survival.

10.5194/egusphere-egu21-15022 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Borja Rodríguez Lozano ◽

Emilio Rodriguez-Caballero ◽

Yolanda Cantón

Keyword(s):

Climate Change ◽

Land Surface ◽

Vegetation Coverage ◽

Runoff Water ◽

Water Losses ◽

Vegetation Productivity ◽

Aridity Gradient ◽

Water Redistribution ◽

The Impact ◽

Vegetation Patches

Drylands are one of the largest biomes over the Earth, covering around 40% of land surface. These are water limited ecosystems where vegetation occupies the most favourable positions over the landscape. Less favourable areas are frequently covered by other biotic and abiotic components such as biological soil crusts, bare soil, or stones. During most rainfall events, runoff is generated in open areas (runoff sources) and redistributed through vegetation patches (runoff sinks), therefore increasing water and nutrient availability for plants. Water redistribution feedbacks determine vegetation coverage and productivity, modulate changes in its spatial distribution, and could ameliorate the predicted negative effects of climate change over these ecosystems.The principal aim of this study was to quantify the impact of water redistribution processes on vegetation performance, and to evaluate how this effect varies in response to aridity. To achieve it, we analysed the relationships between runoff redistribution from open areas and vegetation productivity, by combining satellite information on vegetation state and topography. More precisely, we calculated Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) dynamics during three hydrological years in 17 study sites along an aridity gradient in the SE of the Iberian Peninsula using SENTINEL 2 images. Then we used a DEM and a high spatial resolution vegetation map to derive a water redistribution index that simulate source-sinks interactions between vegetation and open areas. Finally, we analyse the relationship between, potential water redistribution and vegetation dynamics and how it varies along the aridity gradient.We found a non-linear relationship between potential water redistribution and vegetation productivity. Overall, vegetation NDVI increases as potential water redistribution did, which demonstrated the importance of water redistribution processes on drylands vegetation performance. However, vegetation capacity to retain runoff water is limited and there is a clear threshold above which increased potential water redistribution does not promote vegetation productivity. Thresholds are caused by the limit capacity of vegetation to infiltrate run off when preferential flows are forming, increasing ecosystem connectivity, and involving local water losses for vegetation.&#160; Therefore, an increase in open areas between vegetation patches could have a positive effect over vegetation through hydrological connectivity but until to a certain point in which global connectivity supposed water losses for plants. This process could have important effects under climate change, by controlling the resistance and resilience of vegetation in drylands ecosystems.Acknowledgements. This research was supported by the FPU predoctoral fellowship from the Educational, Culture and Sports Ministry of Spain (FPU17/01886) REBIOARID (RTI2018-101921-B-I00) projects, funded by the FEDER/Science and Innovation Ministry-National Research Agency, and the RH2O-ARID (P18-RT-5130) funded by Junta de Andaluc&#237;a and the European Union for Regional Development.

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