The Chinese government adopted six ecological restoration programs to improve its natural environments. Although these programs have proven successful in improving local environments, some studies have questioned thei...The Chinese government adopted six ecological restoration programs to improve its natural environments. Although these programs have proven successful in improving local environments, some studies have questioned their performance when regions suffer from drought. Whether we should consider the effects of drought on vegetation change in assessments of the benefits of ecological restoration programs is unclear. Therefore, taking the Grain for Green Program(GGP) region as a study area, we estimated vegetation growth in the region from 2000–2010 to clarify the trends in vegetation and their driving forces. Results showed that: 1) vegetation growth increased in the GGP region during 2000–2010, with 59.4% of the area showing an increase in the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index(NDVI). This confirmed the benefits of the ecological restoration program. 2) Drought can affect the vegetation change trend, but human activity plays a significant role in altering vegetation growth, and the slight downward trend in the NDVI was not consistent with the severity of the drought. Positive human activity led to increased NDVI in 89.13% of areas. Of these, 22.52% suffered drought, but positive human activity offset the damage in part. 3) Results of this research suggest that appropriate human activity can maximize the benefits of ecological restoration programs and minimize the effects of extreme weather. We therefore recommend incorporating eco-risk assessment and scientific management mechanisms in the design and management of ecosystem restoration programs.展开更多
The fractal characteristics of the canopy structure of B. gymnorrhiza population are investigated by fractal dimension analysis in the National Shankou Mangrove Nature Reserve. The 3-year-old branches have box dimensi...The fractal characteristics of the canopy structure of B. gymnorrhiza population are investigated by fractal dimension analysis in the National Shankou Mangrove Nature Reserve. The 3-year-old branches have box dimensions between 1.22 and 1.55, showing the complexity degree of branching structure and the ability of occupying and utilizing ecological space. It may be considered that fractal dimension provides a useful index for the study of light utilization efficiencies and growth processes of B. gymnorrhiza. Calculated by using the two-surface method, the fractal dimensions for the crown pattern of individuals with ages of 20 to 50 years range from 2.21 to 2.54, indicating that the filling degree of foliage to a tree crown is relatively low and B. gymnorrhiza has the property of a sun plant. Along with the increase of ages of individuals, the filling degree of foliage to a tree crown changes from high to low, and so does the fractal dimension. The box dimensions obtained from the grayscale curves of population canopy are between 1.47 and 1.61. The greater the box dimension, the more loosely organized the canopy spatial structure, and the more the light spots. The canopy structural information and complexity of a population can be effectively captured by box dimensions obtained from canopy grayscale curves.展开更多
基金Under the auspices of the National Key R&D Program of China(No.2017YFC0504701)Science and Technology Service Network Initiative Project of Chinese Academy of Sciences(No.KFJ-STS-ZDTP-036)+1 种基金Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities(No.GK201703053)China Postdoctoral Science Foundation(No.2017M623114)
文摘The Chinese government adopted six ecological restoration programs to improve its natural environments. Although these programs have proven successful in improving local environments, some studies have questioned their performance when regions suffer from drought. Whether we should consider the effects of drought on vegetation change in assessments of the benefits of ecological restoration programs is unclear. Therefore, taking the Grain for Green Program(GGP) region as a study area, we estimated vegetation growth in the region from 2000–2010 to clarify the trends in vegetation and their driving forces. Results showed that: 1) vegetation growth increased in the GGP region during 2000–2010, with 59.4% of the area showing an increase in the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index(NDVI). This confirmed the benefits of the ecological restoration program. 2) Drought can affect the vegetation change trend, but human activity plays a significant role in altering vegetation growth, and the slight downward trend in the NDVI was not consistent with the severity of the drought. Positive human activity led to increased NDVI in 89.13% of areas. Of these, 22.52% suffered drought, but positive human activity offset the damage in part. 3) Results of this research suggest that appropriate human activity can maximize the benefits of ecological restoration programs and minimize the effects of extreme weather. We therefore recommend incorporating eco-risk assessment and scientific management mechanisms in the design and management of ecosystem restoration programs.
基金Supported by grants from Project of NSFC (39860023)
文摘The fractal characteristics of the canopy structure of B. gymnorrhiza population are investigated by fractal dimension analysis in the National Shankou Mangrove Nature Reserve. The 3-year-old branches have box dimensions between 1.22 and 1.55, showing the complexity degree of branching structure and the ability of occupying and utilizing ecological space. It may be considered that fractal dimension provides a useful index for the study of light utilization efficiencies and growth processes of B. gymnorrhiza. Calculated by using the two-surface method, the fractal dimensions for the crown pattern of individuals with ages of 20 to 50 years range from 2.21 to 2.54, indicating that the filling degree of foliage to a tree crown is relatively low and B. gymnorrhiza has the property of a sun plant. Along with the increase of ages of individuals, the filling degree of foliage to a tree crown changes from high to low, and so does the fractal dimension. The box dimensions obtained from the grayscale curves of population canopy are between 1.47 and 1.61. The greater the box dimension, the more loosely organized the canopy spatial structure, and the more the light spots. The canopy structural information and complexity of a population can be effectively captured by box dimensions obtained from canopy grayscale curves.
