谈生态学研究中的尺度问题

Scale in ecological research

尺度是生态学中的核心问题,时间和空间尺度包含于任何生态过程中,尺度在生态学研究中越来越显现出其重要性,原因是解决地球环境问题要求在大尺度上理解格局和过程,而以前生态学调查的数据主要是基于小尺度的,并且有许多研究表明,一个生态问题的结论在很大程度上取决于研究所采纳的尺度。但目前尺度研究还存在很多问题:一些相关概念易与尺度混淆;缺乏成熟的尺度识别方法和系统完备的尺度转换方法等。针对这些问题,本文首先阐明了尺度的确切含义,并对尺度研究的发展历史、重要性作了回顾和阐述;分析探讨了尺度与等级理论、格局的关系,及尺度识别、尺度转换的方法和发展趋势。

Scales, as the critical issue in ecology, exist in any ecological process in forms of temporal and spatial scales, and play a important role in ecology. This can be due to two reasons: one is the demand of understanding pattern and process on larger scales when solving many global environmental problems, while past ecological research mainly on small scales, and another is the conclusion that an given ecological problem lies on the scale selected in the study. But there remain a lot of problems in the study of ecological scales, such as the confusion between scales and some related concepts, the lack of a set of systemic and perfect methods for scale identification, and for scaling as well. This paper clarified the exact meaning of scales firstly, and looked back to the development history and importance of ecological scale andlysis. Next it discussed the relations between scales and hierarchy theory, as well as scale and pattern. In addition, it also discussed the methods and the developing trend of identifying scales and scaling.