Emergence of highly pathogenic avian influenza A(H5N8)clade 2.3.4.4b viruses in grebes in Inner Mongolia and Ningxia,China,in 2021

Highly pathogenic avian influenza(HPAI)subtype H5Nx viruses have spread globally and are a major concern for poultry,wild birds,mammals,and even humans(de Vries et al.2015;Zeng et al.2022).The hemagglutinin(HA)genes of H5 subtype viruses have evolved into multiple clades and some of these clades have been further divided into subclades(Cui et al.2022).Clade 2.3.4.4H5N8 HPAI viruses(HPAIVs)have caused several waves of disease outbreaks in wild birds and domestic poultry(Wang et al.2022).

Spatial and Temporal Evolution Characteristics of Extreme Precipitation and Isohyets in Ningxia

The multi-scale spatial and temporal evolution characteristics of extreme precipitation and isohyets in Ningxia were studied using daily,monthly,and annual precipitation data from 20 meteorological stations in Ningxia over the last 60 years.The results revealed that the intensity of rainstorms in Ningxia had decreased slightly over the previous 60 years,with the intensity of rainstorms in southern and central Ningxia being higher than in northern areas.Ningxia's annual and seasonal precipitation varied regionally,declining from the southeast to the northwest.Annual,spring and autumn precipitation exhibited a significantly declining trend from 1960 to the early 21^(st)century;summer precipitation displayed a slightly decreasing trend;and winter precipitation showed a significantly increasing trend.Nevertheless,there was a noticeable increase in annual and seasonal precipitation after 2005.From the 1960s to the 2000s,the 200 mm isohyet moved slowly southward,while the 400 mm isohyet jumped southward twice in the 1970s and 2000s before jumping considerably northward in the 2010s to reach their northernmost region.

Exploring Ningxia The Chinese Culture and Tourism Global Promotional Campaign&Ningxia Cultural Tourism Resources Promotion

Ningxia,known as"Saishang Jiangnan"(the place to the north of the Great Wall,which is as beautiful as south of Yangtze River),is converged with diverse natural landscapes and rich cultural heritage.In recent years,Ningxia has combined the development of the wine industry with the strengthening of ecological governance and the development of culture and tourism.

Treating Guests Coming from Afar with Delicious Ningxia Food

Located in China's mainland,Ningxia has complex terrain and landform,unique landscape and distinctive delicious food.The Helan Mountain and Yinchuan Plain in the north are intertwined with the Yellow River,contributing to the fertile land.

China Story,Purple Image Ningxia Wine Cultural Tour in the Eyes of Foreign Photographers

Ningxia,a treasure land in western China converged with profound culture and rich natural resources,is now attracting the world's attention with its unique wine culture.This year,we invited four photographers,i.e.,Jeremy Walter from France,OlmoReverterFernandezfromSpain,DanSandoval from the United States and Micheal Joseph Finck from Canada,to visit Ningxia for a six-day tour of wineculture.

Research on the Spatial Characteristics of Traditional Residential Buildings in Ningxia Region

This article takes traditional residential buildings in Ningxia region as the starting point,and through field research and data analysis,demonstrates the specific elements of the spatial composition of traditional residential buildings and the common forms of courtyard space.The study summarizes the regional cultural characteristics of traditional residential buildings in the region,laying a foundation for subsequent research and providing some reference basis.

China-Arab States Tour Operators Conference of the Sixth China-Arab States Expo Opens in Yinchuan,Ningxia

China-Arab States Tour Operators Conference of the Sixth China-Arab States Expo,co-hosted by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism and the People's Government of Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region,and organized by the Network of International Culturalink Entities and the Department of Culture and Tourism of Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region..

China Story,Purple Witness Ningxia Wine Label Art Exhibition

Wine and art are our connection to the land.The land at the foot of the Helan Mountains has been quiet for too long between sand and gravel.It wasn't until the 1980s that there was finally human farming on this land for the first time.Wine,for the first time,conveyed the vitality of life and thepowerof millions ofyears ofdeposition.

Impacts of Land Use Change on Ecosystem Service Value in Yanchi County of Ningxia

Based on TM image data in 1989, 1995, 1999, 2003, 2006 and 2009 of Yanchi County of Ningxia, the land use date of Yanchi County in each year were extracted supported by RS and GIS technology, and used to analyze the dynamic change of land use. The land use data were studied for estimating the change of ecosystem services value caused by the land use change of Yanchi County, using the evaluation method of China terrestrial ecosystem services value. The results showed that the changes of land use were obvious during 1989 to 2009. The area of woodland and construction land had an increasing tendency; grassland area changed from decreasing to increasing, which was in contrary to farmland and un-used land areas （from increasing to decreasing）; water area fluctuated slightly. The ecosystem services value of Yanchi County had an increasing tendency during 1989 to 1995, because the increasing woodland area had took the major role in raising the total ecosystem services value. The grassland accounted for a large proportion of the total ecosystem service value of Yanchi County, with its contribution rate from 49.8% to 60.4%. And the composition of the ecosystem services value of Yanchi County happened benign change for the increasing contribution rate of woodland. The ecosystem services value sensitivity index of each land use type was less than 1, indicating that the ecosystem services value of Yanchi County lacks flexibility on its service value index, and the research results are reliable.

Prediction of Maize Yield and Its Component Factors in Yellow River Irrigation Area of Ningxia under Climate Change

[Objective] The aim was to quantitatively predict the variation trend of maize yield in Yellow River irrigation area of Ningxia under future climate change scenarios.[Method] Based on the data of daily temperature,precipitation and radiation in 25 km × 25 km grid in Ningxia from 2010 to 2100 obtained by regional climate model,maize yield in Yellow River irrigation area of Ningxia in the 21st century was studied by means of corrected CERES-Maize model.[Result] With climate warming,maize yield in Yellow River irrigation area of Ningxia in 2020s and 2050s showed increase trend compared with base years（average in 1961-1990）when current adaptive maize variety and optimum production management measures were adopted,while maize yield went down in 2080s with the further increase of temperature.The grain number per spike and spike grain weight as the yield components of maize also showed the same trend with maize yield.In 2020s and 2050s,the increase of maize yield under B2 scenario was higher than that under A2 scenario,while the decrease of maize yield under B2 scenario was lower than that under A2 scenario in 2080s.[Conclusion] With the increase of temperature,maize yield in Yellow River irrigation area of Ningxia went up firstly and then went down.

Analysis on Temporal and Spatial Characteristic and Variation of Precipitation in Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region

Based on seasonal and annual observed precipitation data at 19 meteorological stations in Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region,the temporal and spatial distribution characteristic is analyzed by EOF method.And spatial characteristics and temporal changes trends of EOF of seasonal and annual precipitation have been showed.The main period and sudden changes point of EOF of annual precipitation have been studied by Mann-Kendall and spectrum analysis method.

Sustainability Analysis of Cropland Use in Cropping-Pastoral Ecotone before and after the Grain-for-Green Policy:A Case Study from Yanchi County in Ningxia

[Objective] This study aimed to analyze the sustainability of cropland use in cropping-pastoral ecotone before and after the Grain-for-Green Policy. [Method] Using Yanchi County in Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region as a case study area, this investigation used the annual transfer rate of land use types, cropland suitability and emergy analysis to examine the major pressures affecting the sustainable use of cropland before and after the Grain-for-Green Policy. [Result] The expansion of con- struction land onto cropland was significant; the annual cropland area was still larger than the land area suitable for cropping after the policy; agrochemical inputs used for crop production gradually increased and unit crop outputs required more agro- chemical inputs. Cropland use sustainability showed a fluctuating downward trend. [Conclusion] The results imply that the protection of high quality cropland, further im- plementation of the policy and control of agrochemical inputs according to precipita- tion are the main measures needed for sustainable cropland use in cropping-pastoral ecotone.

Analysis of Drought Changes and Drought Mitigation in Xiji County of Ningxia

[Objective] The aim was to study the characteristics of the changes of extreme weather climate incidents such as severe drought in northwest and rainstorm in Xiji County of Ningxia. [Method] Precipitation anomaly percentage was applied to divide drought level and for statistics analysis. Seasonal index, linear tendency, and 5-years gliding average were used to reflect the trend of drought changes. The circulation wave of temporal sequence used polynomial expression to simulate the interannual variation scale. The positive part of the polynomial expression used bar chart to simulate interannual variation scale. [Result] The index of drought season from November to June was large. The general trend of annual drought was increasing. The drought of interannual scale was most serious around 1977, about 15 and 20 years. The drought in recent years went up. The general situation of drought, interannual scale and changes of interannual scales from March to May and from September to October were discussed. Based on the weather at 500 hPa, the first rain in Xiji and the drought-turning-into-rain situation were classified. [Conclusion]These may provide reference value to the prevention and mitigation of drought.

Research on the Green Planning in Rural Settlements of Hui Nationality in Central Ningxia

Targeted at the residence status in rural settlements of Hui people in central Ningxia Hui Nationality Autonomous Region, this research revealed that the construction of new countryside and the transformation of old countryside all have to be on the basis of present topography, landform, environment, social-economic level, education, religion, customs, living habits and so on. The primary goal of this research was to find a method of ecology, low energy consumption and sustainable development to bring the green planning implementation strategies, to provide guidance for sustainable planning in the rural settlements of Hui Nationality in central Ningxia.

Historical Changes of Ningxia Natural Disasters and Its Reason Analysis

A quantitative model is built and the historical variation of natural disasters is analyzed in this paper,by using materials as affected area(damaged area),affected population(dead and injured),casualty of livestock,collapsed houses(damaged houses),decrease of crops yield,economic loss(direct and indirect) and price index over the same period of Ningxia natural disasters(include drought,flood,gale and hail,frost,pest disasters and other disasters) during 1978-2007,and applying gray correlation analysis method.The long-term changes trend of natural disasters is analyzed by the application of the least squares method for linear trend,and the oscillation period is analyzed by using the maximum entropy statistical method.It is found that natural disasters have basically 2 to 3 years of variation period either in the whole region or in the individual regions;from the mid 1980s to the late 1990s,Ningxia is in an oscillation period with disasters attacked frequently in decadal and interannual scale under the background of climate;the increase of damage intensity of natural disasters slow down and tends to decrease since 2000.

Seasonal changes in the water-use strategies of three herbaceous species in a native desert steppe of Ningxia,China

Frequent periods of drought conditions are known to limit plant performance,primary production,and ecosystem stability in arid and semi-arid desert steppe environments.Plants often avoid competition by shifting their water use seasonally,which affects the water-use patterns of dominant species as well as the composition and structure of plant communities.However,the water-use strategies of dominant herbaceous species,which grow under natural field conditions in the desert steppe region of Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region,China,are poorly known.Here,we explored the possible sources of water uptake and water-use efficiency(WUE)of three dominant herbaceous plant species(Stipa breviflora,Agropyron mongolicum,and Glycyrrhiza uralensis)in a native desert steppe in the semi-arid area of Ningxia through an analysis of multiple parameters,including(1)the stable isotopic oxygen and hydrogen(δ18O andδ2H)compositions of precipitation,soil water,and stem water,(2)the carbon isotope(13C)composition of leaves,and(3)the soil water contents,based on field sampling across varying water conditions from June to September,2017.Frequent small precipitation events replenished shallow soil water,whereas large events only percolated down to the deep soil layers.Changes in soil water availability affected the water-use patterns of plants.Generally,during light precipitation periods,the deep root system of G.uralensis accessed deeper(>80 cm)soil water,whereas S.breviflora and A.mongolicum,which only have shallow roots,primarily absorbed water from the shallow and middle soil layers.As precipitation increased,all three plant species primarily obtained water from the shallow soil layers.Variation in soil water uptake between the dry and wet seasons enabled plants to make better use of existing satoil water.In addition,theδ13C values of G.uralensis and S.breviflora were higher than those of A.mongolicum.Theδ13C values of the three plant species were significantly negatively correlated with soil water content.Therefore,G.uralensis and S.breviflora maintained a higher WUE through their conservative and water-saving strategies across the entire growing season.In contrast,A.mongolicum,with a relatively low WUE in the wet season but a high WUE in the dry season,exhibited a more flexible water-use strategy.The different water-use strategies of these dominant plant species demonstrated the mechanisms by which plant communities can respond to drought.

Response of Artificial Grassland Carbon Stock to Management in Mountain Region of Southern Ningxia, China

Grassland is a major carbon sink in the terrestrial ecosystem. The dynamics of grassland carbon stock profoundly influence the global carbon cycle. In the published literatures so far, however, there are limited studies on the long-term dynamics and influential factors of grassland carbon stock, including soil organic carbon. In this study, spatial-temporal substitution method was applied to explore the characteristics of Medicago sativa L. （alfalfa） grassland biomass carbon and soil organic carbon density （SOCD） in a loess hilly region with different growing years and management patterns. The results demonstrated that alfalfa was the mono-dominant community during the cutting period （viz. 0-10 year）. Community succession began after the abandonment of alfalfa grassland and then the important value of alfalfa in the community declined. The artificial alfalfa community abandoned for 30 years was replaced by the S. bungeana community. Accordingly, the biomass carbon density of the clipped alfalfa showed a significant increase over the time during 0-10 year. During 0-30 year, the SOCD from 0-100 cm of the soil layer of all 5 management patterns increased over time with a range between 5.300 ± 0.981 kg/m2 and 12.578 ± 0.863 kg/m2. The sloping croplands had the lowest SOCD at 5.300 ± 0.981 kg/m2 which was quite different from the abandoned grasslands growing for 30 years which exhibited the highest SOCD with 12.578 ± 0.863 kg/m2. The ecosystem carbon density of the grassland clipped for 2 years increased 0.1 kg/m2 compared with the sloping cropland, while that of the grassland clipped for 10 years substantially increased to 10.30 ± 1.26 kg/m2. Moreover, the ecosystem carbon density for abandoned grassland became 12.62± 0.50 kg/m2 at 30 years. The carbon density of the grassland undisturbed for l0 years was similar to that of the sloping cropland and the grassland clipped for 2 years. Different management patterns imposed great different effects on the accumulation of biomass carbon on artificial grasslands, whereas the ecosystem carbon density of the grassland showed a slight increase from the clipping to abandonment of grassland in general.

Innovative trend analysis of annual and seasonal precipitation in Ningxia,China

Based on daily rainfall data from 26 station records,spatial and temporal variations in annual and seasonal precipitation of different rainfall intensities from 1961 to 2018 in Ningxia,China are investigated using the innovative trend analysis(ITA)method.The results show that annual precipitation increases on the northern plain but decreases in the southern mountainous area.The increase in regional annual precipitation is mainly due to an increase in weak precipitation,while the decrease in regional annual rainfall is a result of a reduction in heavy precipitation.Lowintensity precipitation shows an upward trend,while high-intensity precipitation shows a downward trend.The variation trend of extreme precipitation is more obvious.The contributions of different types of extreme precipitation vary by season.During spring,the increase in regional rainfall is mainly caused by the increase in heavy precipitation,while the decrease in regional precipitation is mainly caused by the decrease in weak precipitation.During summer and autumn,the increase in regional precipitation is caused by the increase in light precipitation,while the reduction in regional rainfall is caused by the decrease in heavy precipitation.This study provides support for water resources planning and addressing droughts and floods.

Reconstructing the annual precipitation variation since 1899 based on tree-ring width in the western Hedong sandy land of Ningxia

Based on the analysis of the correlation between the tree-ring width of Pinus tabulaeformis and the climate factors in the western Hedong sandy land of Ningxia, a conversion equation between the annual precipitation and the tree-ring width since 1899 was reconstructed. The results of cross verification indicated that the conversion equation is stable and the reconstructed results are reliable. The result of reconstructed annual precipitation showed the remarkable fluctuation of precipitation and dry-to-wet variation before the 1940s. The smaller fluctuation and high frequent changes of precipitation occurred during the period of 1940s-1980s and after the 1980s the change trend of the precipitation became high periodic extent and low frequent. The study found that there were some coincidences with the climate change in Changling Mountains, Helan Mountains and the east of Qilian Mountains. The relatively dry periods in the beginning of 20th century, 1920s to 1930s, the end of the 20th century and 2004 to 2006 in the western Hedong sandy land of Ningxia accelerated the desertification, while the relatively humid period during the periods of the 1910s-1920s, 1930s-1940s and 1990s is favorable to prevent and control the desertification, and to weaken the climate warming and drying. The periods of annual precipitation variation in the western Hedong sandy land of Ningxia since 1899 are approximately 2-4 years, 5-7 years and 10 years.

Preliminary analysis of teleseismic receiver functions of the Ningxia and its adjacent area

The teleseismic receiver functions of digital seismic network of Ningxia and its adjacent area are calculated with two different Gauss filter factors. The accuracy and stability of the receiver functions are discussed. The h-k stacking method is applied to estimate the crustal thickness and velocity ratio beneath seismic stations. The results indicate that there are sharp changes of crustal thickness and velocity ratio in the studied region. This region is located in the northeastern margin of Tibet, and also a junction of several first-grade blocks. The large contrast of crustal structure in this region is considered to be resulted from the interaction of these blocks. Our results are helpful to construct the completed model of the formation and evolution of the Tibet. Some local structures are also discussed combining with the geological faults.