The Landscape Structure And Its Function And Ecological Regionalization Of The Ecotone Between Agriculture And Animal Husbandry In Northeast China

This paper is a comprehensive account of the landscape structure, its function and landscape ecological regionalization of the ecotone between agriculture and animal husbandry in Northeast China by using the ways of remote sensing (RS), geographic information system (GIS) and global positioning system (GPS). The paper discusses the principle and system of the classification of landscape elements and classifies the patch types in the region. The landscape pattern index, such as average patch area, landscape similarity index, largest patch index, patch density, landscape perimeter density, landscape shape index, landscape diversity index, and etc., the spatial pattern and the mechanistic that come into being their patterns are analysed. The patch function types, their quantity characteristics and ecological process are also discussed. Finally, the principle and scheme of landscape ecological regionalization are constituted base on above the analysis results, and general situation of every regions are introduced. The primary conclusions are as follows.1. The ecotone between agriculture and animal husbandry in the Northeast China, sited in the east of the ecotone between agriculture and animal husbandry in China. Its north latitude is from 41 to 51,and the east longitude is from 117 to 125. The districts include 57 counties (or towns) belong to 4 provinces. Its total area is about 3.8 millions km2.2. The patch types are made up of 2 high-level types, 9 secondary types and 38 low-grade types.3. The similar degree of farmland landscape with regional landscape of is topmost and is primary landscapes. The mountain landscape is secondly. The two large landscapes form the framework of the ecotone between agriculture and animal husbandry in the Northeast China. The patch number and density of bottomland landscapes is the maximum. The area of fluvial landscapes is smaller, but the patch perimeter is biggish.4. In broad-scale, the landscape of mountains and upland form zonary pattern, and run through regional landscape from northeast to southwest, and east side there is continuous farmland landscape. In fine scale, the distributing pattern of low-grade types is very different in each area.5. The factor of the physiognomy and climate is dominating natural factors in forming broad-scale pattern. The factor of local landform is acting in forming fine-scale pattern. But human factor influences on landscape pattern in all levels scale.6. Bases function of ecosystem service, landscape patch types are divided multifunctional patch, environmental service patch, production patch, consumption patch and no function patch.7. The ecotone between agriculture and animal husbandry in the Northeast China can be divided into 5 landscape regions and 11 sub-regions.