Landscape Change On Patch Level In The Eastern Qilian Mountains

Landscape change in 2008 and 1994 shows that the reduction of snow and ice is in the marked degree, respectively reached 28.25% and 21.49%.Grasslands,forest and water patches are also reduced in patch numbers and area with various degrees. On the whole,the grassland,forests and the water landscape are in degradation trends with the patch numbers and size reduced,fragmentation being smaller and it's degradation region was replaced by wilderness landscape and bush landscape.The large patches which is over 1000hm~2 of forests and grassland are impacted by the climate change and fall to pieces into smaller patches.Snow patches in different sizes have apparent degradation and reduced fragmentation degree.The fragmentation of water patches in 10-100hm~2 or 100-1000hm~2 become even smaller.All types of the patches in 1-10hm~2 except of snow and ice,the numbers and area have a trend of significant growth.Except bush,the other small-scale landscape Patch are reduced,especially the snow and grass.Generally speaking, the overall shape of all the landscape types tends to be complicated. The shape of large patches which is over 1000hm2 execept ice and snow becomes more regular and less narrow,the others change reversely.100-1000hm2 patches except snow and ice and wilderness landscape have the more regular shape;The grassland and wilderness have increasing narrow degree;The change of water patch shape is not noted. The shape of 1-10hm2 and the 10-100hm~2 patch except snow and ice become more regular;The shape of snow and ice are getting more narrow,the bush has no significant change, and the other have more reduced narrow degree.The shape of the patch within 1hm~2 except the shape of forest patches which tends to be complex do not change markedly;The bush and water have the increasing narrow degree, and the remaining landscape do not not change significantly in narrow degree.