Temporal and Spatial Changes of Soil Erosion and Its Response to Landscape Pattern in Dabie Mountains of Western Anhui in Recent 30 Years

Abstract

[Objective] The Dabie Mountain area in western Anhui Province is an important ecological transition area between the Yangtze River Basin and the Huaihe River Basin in Anhui Province. The study on the landscape pattern and soil erosion and their relationship in this area is helpful to provide a reference for the regulation of landscape pattern and soil erosion control in this area. [Methods] The RULSE model was used to calculate the soil erosion modulus in the Dabie Mountains of western Anhui in the recent 30 years. The changes of landscape pattern were described by landscape index, and the influence of landscape index on soil erosion was explored by partial least squares regression (PLSR). [Results] In recent 30 years, the soil erosion modulus showed a trend of decreasing first and increasing later. The areas with serious soil erosion were mainly concentrated in the central and western regions and the southern mountainous areas. In most areas, the soil erosion intensity was mainly slight and mild, and the erosion intensity of different land use types had obvious difference, which was grassland > cultivated land > forest land. The land use type and landscape pattern were generally stable. The change of landscape pattern was mainly manifested in the reduction of landscape fragmentation and the improvement of landscape heterogeneity and connectivity. Shannon’s Diversity Index (SHDI), Edge Density Index (ED), Proportion of Like Adjacencies (PLADJ), and Landscape Shape Index (LSI) had significant explanatory significance for the Dabie Mountain area in west Anhui Province. Shannon’s Diversity Index (SHDI), Edge Density Index (ED), and Landscape Shape Index (LSI) had significant positive effects on soil erosion, while Proportion of Like Adjacencies (PLADJ) had significant negative effects on soil erosion. [Conclusion] In the Dabie Mountains of western Anhui, the increase of landscape fragmentation and the decrease of landscape connectivity will significantly promote soil erosion.

Keywords

• soil erosion
• landscape pattern
• rulse model
• partial least-squares regression