Spatial and temporal differences in the response of water conservation and soil conservation to ecosystem fragmentation: evidence from Qilian Mountain National Park of China

Abstract

Using spatial autocorrelation methods, we explored the spatial and temporal differences in the response of soil conservation (SC) and water conservation (WC) to ecosystem fragmentation during 1990 to 2019 in Qilian Mountain National Park (QMNP) of China. We found that the degree of ecosystem fragmentation decreased over the past 30 years, improving the WC and SC capacity of the ecosystems. However, the relationship among them varied temporally and exhibited a variety of spatial patterns. The correlation between fragmentation and WC increases year by year, and the correlation with SC weakens. There is a mismatch between park-level and regional autocorrelation between fragmentation and WC and SC. The spatial relationships between fragmentation and WC and SC in the QMNP show "high-high" and "low-low" patterns in its eastern and western sections, respectively. This heterogeneity is related to the differences in ecosystem composition, especially in ecosystem WC and SC capacity, and the characteristics of ecosystem fragmentation in the east-west direction of the QMNP.

Keywords: Ecosystem fragmentation; Qilian Mountain National Park of China; Response; Spatial autocorrelation; Water and soil conservation.