Response of Plant Species Diversity to Flood Irrigation in the Tarim River Basin, Northwest China

Abstract

This study quantitatively analyzes the effects of flooding on the growth and species diversity of riparian forests along the Yarkant River and the Tarim River, Xinjiang, in northwest China, and provides important information for the efficient utilization of water and water resource management in arid regions. Monitoring of species diversity of riparian forests was conducted every year from 2016 to 2019 in the Xiamale forest district in the lower reaches of the Yarkant River, and in the Shaya forest district and the lunnan forest district in the upper and middle reaches of the Tarim River. The Pielou index, Shannon–Wiener index, Simpson index, and importance value were used to analyze the influence of flooding. The results showed the following: (1) After three years of flooding, indices for the lower reaches of the Yarkant River and Tarim River were significantly increased and 11 new plant species appeared. (2) With increasing distance from the river channel, plant density and species diversity decreased. Flooding trends are the main factors affecting the distribution of plant species and water is the main restricting factor that influences plant growth in arid areas; thus, desert riparian forests improved significantly after flooding. (3) Flooding increases the regeneration capacity and species diversity of plant communities in desert riparian forests. In order to maintain the current trend of ecological improvement, flooding irrigation must continue.

Predictions of Land Use/Land Cover Change and Landscape Pattern Analysis in the Lower Reaches of the Tarim River, China

“…Accordingly, an overall perspective should be adopted to analyze the relationships and interactions between regional socioeconomics, natural ecology, and water resources within the basin, in addition to exploring the causes of ecological degradation within the area [39][40][41]. To this end, identifying the specific LUCC dynamics and patterns provides the key foundation for strengthening federal scientific supervision, promoting sustainable and socioeconomically beneficial land use, and alleviating human-land conflicts and other ecological issues [42][43][44]. After accounting for the implementation of water delivery and the existing problems in the TRlr, we propose the following suggestions:…”

Impact of Ecological Water Transfer Project on Vegetation Recovery in Dried-Up Kongque River, Northwest China

“…Numerous studies have employed field investigations and observation stations to gather essential measurement data, encompassing vegetation coverage, species diversity, population structure, and groundwater dynamics. These datasets play a pivotal role in assessing the effectiveness of the EWTP [4,41,42]. Nevertheless, due to the challenging climatic conditions prevalent in the lower Kongque River area, there exists a paucity of available field observations.…”