The conservation patterns of grassland ecosystem in response to the forage-livestock balance in North China

Being a key ecological security barrier and production base for grassland animal husbandry in China,the balance between grassland forage supply and livestock-carrying pressure in North China directly affects grassland degradation and restoration,thereby impacting grassland ecosystem services.This paper analyzes the spatiotemporal variation in grassland vegetation coverage,forage supply,and the balance between grassland forage supply and livestock-carrying pressure from 2000 to 2015 in North China.We then discuss the spatial pattern of grassland ecological conservation under the impacts of grassland degradation and restoration,and livestock-carrying pressure.Over the last 16 years,the total grassland area in North China decreased by about 16,000 km2,with vegetation coverage degraded by 6.7％ of the grasslands but significantly restored by another 5.4％ of grasslands.The provisioning of forage by natural grassland mainly increased over time,with an annual growth rate of approximately 0.3 kg/ha,but livestock-carrying pressure also increased continuously.The livestock-carrying pressure index without any supplementary feeding reached as high as 3.8.Apart from the potential livestock-carrying capacity in northeastern Inner Mongolia and the central Tibetan Plateau,most regions in North China are currently overloaded.Considering the actual supplementary feeding during the cold season,the livestock-carrying pressure index is about 3.1,with the livestock-carrying pressure mitigated in central and eastern Inner Mongolia.Assuming full supplementary feeding in the cold season,livestock-carrying pressure index will fall to 1.9,with the livestock-carrying pressure alleviated significantly in Inner Mongolia and on the Tibetan Plateau.Finally,we propose different conservation and development strategies to balance grassland ecological conservation and animal husbandry production in different regions of protected areas,pastoral areas,farming-pastoral ecotone,and farming areas,according to the grassland ecological protection patterns.     

Effects of Enclosure on Plant and Soil Nutrients in Different Types of Alpine Grassland

Enclosure is one of the most widely used management tools for degraded alpine grassland on the northern Tibetan Plateau, but the responses of different types of grassland to enclosure may vary, and research on these responses can provide a scientific basis for improving ecological conservation. This study took one site for each of three grassland types (alpine meadow, alpine steppe and alpine desert) on the northern Tibetan Plateau as examples, and explored the effects of enclosure on plant and soil nutrients by comparing differences in plant community biomass, leaf-soil nutrient content and their stoichiometry between samples from inside and outside the fence. The results showed that enclosure can significantly increase all aboveground biomass in these three grassland types, but it only increased the 10-20 cm underground biomass in the alpine desert. Enclosure also significantly increased the leaf nutrient content of the dominant plants and contents of total nitrogen (N), total potassium (K), and organic carbon (C) in 10-20 cm soil in alpine desert, thus changing the stoichiometry between C, N and P (phosphorus). However, enclosure significantly increased only the N content of dominant plant leaves in alpine steppe, while other nutrients and stoichiometries of both plant leaves and soil did not show significant differences in alpine meadow and alpine steppe. These results suggested that enclosure has differential effects on these three types of alpine grasslands on the northern Tibetan Plateau, and the alpine desert showed the most active ecological conservation in the responses of its soil and plant nutrients.     

中国草畜平衡状态时空演变指示的草地生态保护格局

中国草原牧区作为重要生态安全屏障和草地畜牧业生产基地,其草畜平衡状态直接影响草地退化与恢复,进而影响草地生态系统服务能力的强弱。本文分析了2000—2015年主要草原牧区草地植被覆盖、牧草供给、草畜平衡状态的时空变化特征,深入探讨草地退化与恢复及载畜压力下草地生态系统保护与恢复空间格局。结果表明：过去16年主要草原牧区草地面积净减少约163万hm²,6.7%的草地出现植被覆盖退化,而5.4%的草地呈现植被覆盖明显恢复。天然草地牧草供给量以增加为主,年增率约0.3 kg/hm²,然而其载畜压力亦持续增加,不考虑补饲的载畜压力指数高达3.8,除内蒙古东北部、青藏高原中部仍有载畜潜力,其余多处于超载状态;考虑实际冷季补饲的载畜压力指数约3.1,内蒙古中东部有所缓解;假设冷季全额补饲则载畜压力指数减至1.9,内蒙古、青藏高原等区域明显缓解。叠加上述数据,本文针对自然保护地、牧区、半农半牧区和农区等不同区域的草地生态保护格局,提出了平衡草地生态保护与畜牧生产利用的不同发展策略。     

藏北高原高寒草地围栏禁牧和生长季降水对物种丰富度和多样性的影响(英文)

2009和2010年夏天沿藏北高原高寒草地样带调查了高寒草地生态系统(高寒草甸、高寒草原和荒漠草原)在围栏禁牧和自由放牧管理下的物种丰富度和多样性(Shannon-Wiener指数,Simpson优势度指数和Pielou均匀度指数)。研究结果显示:自2006年起藏北高原围栏禁牧在植被类型和区域尺度上没有显著改变物种丰富度和多样性。物种丰富度和多样性主要受生长季降水驱动,超过87%的变异可由生长季降水来解释。物种丰富度和多样性在自由放牧和围栏禁牧2类样地对生长季降水的响应方式一致。物种丰富度随降水呈指数型增长关系,多样性指数则呈现正线性关系。研究结果预示藏北高原地区生长季降水的变化对于物种丰富度和多样性管理至关重要,在未来高寒草地保护研究中应予以重视。     

青藏高原高寒草甸生态系统CO2通量研究进展

高寒草甸是广布于青藏高原的主要植被类型,它是青藏高原大气与地面之间生物地球化学循环的重要构成部分,在区域碳平衡中起着极为重要的作用。基于对青藏高原主要高寒草甸生态系统类型CO2通量研究方面的综述,系统分析了高寒草甸生态系统CO2通量日、季、年等不同时间尺度的变化特征以及温度、光合有效辐射、降水等主要环境因子对高寒草甸生态系统CO2通量的影响;同时,结合其他地区草地生态系统,就青藏高原三种典型高寒草甸生态系统类型源汇效应和Q10值进行了比较;最后,结合青藏高原高寒草甸生态系统CO2通量研究的现实与需要,提出了当前存在一些不确定性和有待深入研究的问题。     

Spatial pattern of grassland aboveground biomass and its environmental controls in the Eurasian steppe

Vegetation biomass is an important component of terrestrial ecosystem carbon stocks. Grasslands are one of the most widespread biomes worldwideplaying an important role in global carbon cycling. Thereforestudying spatial patterns of biomass and their correlations to environment in grasslands is fundamental to quantifying terrestrial carbon budgets. The Eurasian steppean important part of global grasslandsis the largest and relatively well preserved grassland in the world. In this studywe analyzed the spatial pattern of aboveground biomass(AGB)and correlations of AGB to its environment in the Eurasian steppe by meta-analysis. AGB data used in this study were derived from the harvesting method and were obtained from three data sources(literatureglobal NPP database at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory Distributed Active Archive Center(ORNL)some data provided by other researchers). Our results demonstrated that:(1) as for the Eurasian steppe overallthe spatial variation in AGB exhibited significant horizontal and vertical zonality. In detailAGB showed an inverted parabola curve with the latitude and with the elevationwhile a parabola curve with the longitude. In additionthe spatial pattern of AGB had marked horizontal zonality in the Black Sea-Kazakhstan steppe subregion and the Mongolian Plateau steppe subregionwhile horizontal and vertical zonality in the Tibetan Plateau alpine steppe subregion.(2) Of the examined environmental variablesthe spatial variation of AGB was related to mean annual precipitation(MAP)mean annual temperature(MAT)mean annual solar radiation(MAR)soil Gravel contentsoil p H and soil organic content(SOC) at the depth of 0–30 cm. NeverthelessMAP dominated spatial patterns of AGB in the Eurasian steppe and its three subregions.(3) A Gaussian function was found between AGB and MAP in the Eurasian steppe overallwhich was primarily determined by unique patterns of grasslands and environment in the Tibetan Plateau. AGB was significantly positively related to MAP in the Black Sea-Kazakhstan steppe subregion(elevation 3000 m)the Mongolian Plateau steppe subregion(elevation 3000 m) and the surface(elevation ≥ 4800 m) of the Tibetan Plateau. Neverthelessthe spatial variation in AGB exhibited a Gaussian function curve with the increasing MAP in the east and southeast margins(elevation 4800 m) of the Tibetan Plateau. This study provided more knowledge of spatial patterns of AGB and their environmental controls in grasslands than previous studies only conducted in local regions like the Inner Mongolian temperate grasslandthe Tibetan Plateau alpine grasslandetc.     

1981-2010 年气候变化对青藏高原实际蒸散的影响

基于1981-2010 年青藏高原80 个气象台站观测数据, 通过改进的LPJ 动态植被模型, 模拟并分析了青藏高原实际蒸散及其与降水的平衡关系(P-E) 的时空变化。研究结果表明, 在过去三十年来青藏高原气候呈现以变暖为主要特征的背景下, 降水量整体略有增加, 潜在蒸散呈减少趋势, 特别是2000 年以前减少趋势显著;青藏高原大部分地区实际蒸散呈增加趋势, P-E的变化趋势呈西北增加-东南减少的空间格局。大气水分蒸散发能力降低理论上会导致实际蒸散减少, 而青藏高原大部分地区实际蒸散增加, 主要影响因素是降水增加, 实际蒸散呈增加(减少) 趋势的区域中86% (73%) 的降水增加(减少)。     

NPP vulnerability of the potential vegetation of China to climate change in the past and future

Using the Integrated Biosphere Simulator, a dynamic vegetation model, this study initially simulated the net primary productivity (NPP) dynamics of China’s potential vegetation in the past 55 years (1961–2015) and in the future 35 years (2016–2050). Then, taking the NPP of the potential vegetation in average climate conditions during 1986–2005 as the basis for evaluation, this study examined whether the potential vegetation adapts to climate change or not. Meanwhile, the degree of inadaptability was evaluated. Finally, the NPP vulnerability of the potential vegetation was evaluated by synthesizing the frequency and degrees of inadaptability to climate change. In the past 55 years, the NPP of desert ecosystems in the south of the Tianshan Mountains and grassland ecosystems in the north of China and in western Tibetan Plateau was prone to the effect of climate change. The NPP of most forest ecosystems was not prone to the influence of climate change. The low NPP vulnerability to climate change of the evergreen broad-leaved and coniferous forests was observed. Furthermore, the NPP of the desert ecosystems in the north of the Tianshan Mountains and grassland ecosystems in the central and eastern Tibetan Plateau also had low vulnerability to climate change. In the next 35 years, the NPP vulnerability to climate change would reduce the forest–steppe in the Songliao Plain, the deciduous broad-leaved forests in the warm temperate zone, and the alpine steppe in the central and western Tibetan Plateau. The NPP vulnerability would significantly increase of the temperate desert in the Junggar Basin and the alpine desert in the Kunlun Mountains. The NPP vulnerability of the subtropical evergreen broad-leaved forests would also increase. The area of the regions with increased vulnerability would account for 27.5% of China.     

Towards Regional Synergy: Reconciling Rangeland Ecological Functioning with Forage Production of Cultivated Pasture

Animal husbandry and crop farming are specialized for development in separate areas on the Tibetan Plateau. Such a pattern of isolation has led to current concerns of rangeland and farming system degradation due to intensive land use. The crop-livestock integration, however, has been proven to increase food and feed productivity thorough niche complementarity, and is thereby especially effective for promoting ecosystem resilience. Regional synergy has emerged as an integrated approach to reconcile rangeland livestock with forage crop production. It moves beyond the specialized sectors of animal husbandry and intensive agriculture to coordinate them through regional coupling. Therefore, crop-livestock integration (CLI) has been suggested as one of the effective solutions to forage deficit and livestock production in grazing systems. But it is imperative that CLI moves forward from the farm level to the regional scale, in order to secure regional synergism during agro-pastoral development. The national key R & D program, Technology and Demonstration of Recovery and Restoration of Degraded Alpine Ecosystems on the Tibetan Plateau, aims to solve the problems of alpine grassland degradation by building up a grass-based animal husbandry technology system that includes synergizing forage production and ecological functioning, reconciling the relationship between ecology, forage production and animal husbandry, and achieving the win-win goals of curbing grassland degradation and changing the development mode of animal husbandry. It is imperative to call for regional synergy through integrating ecological functioning with ecosystem services, given the alarming threat of rangeland degradation on the Tibetan Plateau. The series of papers in this issue, together with those published previously, provide a collection of rangeland ecology and management studies in an effort to ensure the sustainable use and management of the alpine ecosystems.     

青藏高原近40年来的降水变化特征

利用我国青藏高原地区的1961-2000年56个气象站的逐月降水资料,通过计算降水量的距平百分率,分析了青藏高原自1961至2000年以来降水量变化的趋势和1961-2000年以来各季降水量变化趋势,发现:青藏高原近40年来降水量呈增加趋势,降水量的线性增长率约为1.12mm/a。再将高原划分为四个季节,分析了各季40年来的降水量的变化情况得出:春季降水量年际变化较大,秋季降水量变化不明显。夏季降水量值较大而降水变化幅度较小,冬季降水量变化则与夏季相反。通过将青藏高原分为南北两个地区,分析了两个区的年降水量和四个季节的降水量的变化得出:高原南区1961-2000年降水量呈增加的趋势,降水量的线增长率为1.97 mm/a,春季和冬季降水量年际变化较大,夏季降水量变化不明显,秋季降水量略有增加;北区年降水量和夏季的降水量变化较小,秋季降水量的年际变化较大,冬季降水量变化最大。对青藏高原的南北两区用Mann-Kendall方法进行突变分析,显示高原南区分别在1978年和1994年发生突变,北区没有发现突变。     

Radiation balance and the response of albedo to environmental factors above two alpine ecosystems in the eastern Tibetan Plateau

Understanding the energy balance on the Tibetan Plateau is important for better prediction of global climate change. To characterize the energy balance on the Plateau, we examined the radiation balance and the response of albedo to environmental factors above an alpine meadow and an alpine wetland surfaces in the eastern Tibetan Plateau, using 2014 data. Although our two sites belong to the same climatic background, and are close geographically, the annual incident solar radiation at the alpine meadow site(6,447 MJ/(m2·a)) was about 1.1 times that at the alpine wetland site(6,012 MJ/(m2·a)),due to differences in the cloudiness between our two sites. The alpine meadow and the alpine wetland emitted about 38%and 42%, respectively, of annual incident solar radiation back into atmosphere in the form of net longwave radiation; and they reflected about 22% and 18%, respectively, of the annual incident solar radiation back into atmosphere in the form of shortwave radiation. The annual net radiation was 2,648 and 2,544 MJ/(m2·a) for the alpine meadow site and the alpine wetland site, respectively, accounting for only about 40% of the annual incident solar radiation, significantly lower than the global mean. At 30-min scales, surface albedo exponentially decreases with the increase of the solar elevation angle; and it linearly decreases with the increase of soil-water content for our two sites. But those relationships are significantly influenced by cloudiness and are site-specific.     

普兰县农牧结合潜力分析（英文）

农牧结合是高寒牧区放牧系统的一项重要的实践,具有实现农业和牲畜业可持续生产的重大潜力。然而,目前青藏高原的农牧业分离已经导致集约化农业、草地退化和饲料短缺的问题产生。因此,为探索高山放牧系统中农牧结合的潜力,本研究以中国普兰县为例,基于多数据源,分析了牧草生产潜力和牲畜产量,并从饲草供给角度评估了农牧结合的潜力。结果表明:普兰县可用于人工种草的潜在边际土地约560公顷,基本位于环境条件较好的普兰镇周边。而积温是牧草种植的主要环境限制因子,今后牧草种植应注重品种的抗寒性和生长周期,同时也要注意人工草地建立后的退化和沙化问题。另外,虽然2012–2016年普兰县牲畜数量明显下降,但高寒草地放牧牲畜数量依然高于农牧景观的牲畜放牧数量。该地区目前放牧牲畜数量一般维持在约11万只羊单位,而人工草地和作物秸秆能够提供约1.1万只羊单位的饲料,约占农牧景观中牲畜数量的一半。普兰县农牧结合可以适当补充放牧条件下牲畜饲料的缺额,尤其是在农牧区的普兰镇。本研究结果对未来牧草生产和发展农牧结合具有重要的指导意义。     

Changes in inland lakes on the Tibetan Plateau over the past 40 years

Inland lakes and alpine glaciers are important water resources on the Tibetan Plateau. Understanding their variation is crucial for accurate evaluation and prediction of changes in water supply and for retrieval and analysis of climatic information. Data from previous research on 35 alpine lakes on the Tibetan Plateau were used to investigate changes in lake water level and area. In terms of temporal changes, the area of the 35 alpine lakes could be divided into five groups: rising, falling-rising, rising-falling, fluctuating, and falling. In terms of spatial changes, the area of alpine lakes in the Himalayan Mountains, the Karakoram Mountains, and the Qaidam Basin tended to decrease; the area of lakes in the Naqu region and the Kunlun Mountains increased; and the area of lakes in the Hoh Xil region and Qilian Mountains fluctuated. Changes in lake water level and area were correlated with regional changes in climate. Reasons for changes in these lakes on the Tibetan Plateau were analyzed, including precipitation and evaporation from meteorological data, glacier meltwater from the Chinese glacier inventories. Several key problems, e.g. challenges of monitoring water balance, limitations to glacial area detection, uncertainties in detecting lake water-level variations and variable region boundaries of lake change types on the Tibetan Plateau were discussed. This research has most indicative significance to regional climate change.     

21世纪以来青藏高寒草地的变化特征及其对气候的响应

利用遥感数据和气象观测资料探索气候因子对区域植被变化的驱动作用具有重要意义。以1980-2012年气象数据和2000-2012年MODIS-NDVI数据为数据源,借助线性回归和相关分析分别分析了青海和西藏两个地区21世纪以来气候变化对青藏高寒草地的影响机制。结果表明：（1）1980-2012年,青海和西藏地区均呈暖湿化的发展趋势。但21世纪以来,西藏地区降水呈不显著的减少趋势;整个青藏高原中部和西部地区增温趋势明显（>0.05 ℃·a-1）。（2）在年际尺度（2000- 2012年）上,青海地区NDVI呈显著增加的趋势,增长率为0.003·a-1（P<0.05）;西藏地区NDVI无变化趋势,区域尺度统计中植被退化与改善相互抵消。在空间上,青藏高原东北部地区NDVI呈良性趋势,部分区域增长斜率超过0.01·a-1。青藏高原南部地区NDVI呈变差趋势,变化斜率为0.008·a-1。（3）区域上的相关分析显示,在青海地区,降水量的增加和温度的升高共同促进了该区域植被的良性发展趋势;在西藏地区,降水量的减少和温度的升高可能是南部地区植被变差的重要原因。     

青藏高原植被覆盖对水热条件年内变化的响应及其空间特征

利用1982-2000年NOAA/AVHRR卫星的NDVI数据(时间分辨率旬,空间分辨率8 km×8 km),结合同时期的气温和降水资料,基于时滞互相关方法和GIS工具,分析了青藏高原植被覆盖对水、热条件年内变化的时滞响应及其空间特征。结果如下:①除高寒荒漠、森林外,青藏高原植被NDVI与同期旬均温和旬降水相关性均呈高度正相关。其中,中等覆盖度的植被受水、热影响表现更为强烈。②青藏高原植被NDVI对气温和降水有滞后效应,且滞后水平存在空间差异,高原北部(柴达木盆地、昆仑山北冀)和高原南部植被对降水、和温度的响应比较迟缓,而高原中、东部地区植被对温度和降水的响应比较敏感。③不同植被类型对水热条件的响应程度也存在差异,由高到低依次是草甸、草原、灌丛、高寒垫状植被、荒漠,最后是森林。     

1981-2010年气候变化对青藏高原实际蒸散的影响(英文)

From 1981 to 2010,the effects of climate change on evapotranspiration of the alpine ecosystem and the regional difference of effects in the Tibetan Plateau(TP) were studied based on the Lund-Potsdam-Jena dynamic vegetation model and data from 80 meteorological stations.Changes in actual evapotranspiration(AET) and water balance in TP were analyzed.Over the last 30 years,climate change in TP was characterized by significantly increased temperature,slightly increased precipitation,and decreased potential evapotranspiration(PET),which was significant before 2000.AET exhibited increasing trends in most parts of TP.The difference between precipitation and AET decreased in the southeastern plateau and increased in the northwestern plateau.A decrease in atmospheric water demand will lead to a decreased trend in AET.However,AET in most regions increased because of increased precipitation.Increased precipitation was observed in 86% of the areas with increased AET,whereas decreased precipitation was observed in 73% of the areas with decreased AET.     

青藏高原北部五道梁地表热量平衡方程中各分量特征

利用青藏高原北部五道梁地区实测的太阳辐射及气象资料,计算分析了高原北部地面热量平衡方程中各分量特征,定义了一个无量纲参量土壤热平衡系数k。结果显示:五道梁地区地表净辐射及地面加热场强度表现为夏季大,冬季小,地表净辐射累年平均通量为65.5 W/m2;土壤热通量自1997年来有增大的趋势;土壤热平衡系数有增大的趋势,平均值为1.17;感热及潜热是地面热平衡方程中的大项,其中感热居首位,潜热居其次;暖季感热、潜热以相反的趋势变化,Bowen比β值有下降的趋势。     

2000-2010年黄河源玛曲高寒湿地生态格局变化

玛曲湿地作为黄河上游重要的水源涵养以及补给区之一,对于调节黄河水量与泥沙量、维持生物多样性和区域生态平衡以及实现社会经济的可持续发展具有重要意义。为揭示和分析近10 年来玛曲高寒湿地系统动态变化特征及其区域差异性,应用2000 年、2010 年两期Landsat TM卫星影像提取玛曲景观类型信息,对玛曲湿地分布格局变化进行分析;利用S-G 滤波以及最大值合成法处理后的2000-2010 年MODIS归一化植被指数（NDVI）数据,进行一元线性回归分析,模拟湿地生态系统的空间演变趋势;运用长期气候观测数据,采用最小二乘法对玛曲湿地变化与气候之间的相关关系进行分析与探讨。结果表明：近10 年来玛曲夏季年际NDVI值呈现波动减小的趋势,“黄河第一弯”玛曲腹地的阿万仓处NDVI减少明显,且存在沼泽草甸向亚高山草甸类型转化趋势。另外,玛曲高寒湿地变化与降水量及温度的年际变化均有关系,但与降水量的相关关系更强。     

Estimation of the Tibetan Wild Ass Population in Gaize County of Chang Tang Plateau based on the Belt Transect Method and Random Forest Model

As a typical representative of the herbivorous wild animals in Chang Tang Plateau, the number of Tibetan wild asses has increased significantly in recent years. Clarifying the distribution, population, and size of its habitats is conducive to formulating the protection plan for wild animals and managing the conflict between people and wild animals in Chang Tang Plateau. Based on the distribution probability of Tibetan wild ass habitats and environmental factors, the number of Tibetan wild asses in Gaize County of Chang Tang Plateau was calculated by using the belt transect method and random forest model, and due to the uncertainty of the calculations, the results were corrected and analyzed. The results show that the living environment of Tibetan wild asses in Gaize County of Chang Tang Plateau is at 4400-4600 m above sea level, 350-400 m away from the river, and the average temperature in the warmest season is 10-12 ℃. The vegetation types of habitats are generally temperate tufted dwarf grass, dwarf semi shrub desert grassland, alpine grass, Carex grassland, alpine cushion dwarf semi shrub desert, among others. On the basis of studying the environmental preferences of Tibetan wild asses, the random forest model was corrected by using the data of the second scientific survey sample line of Qinghai-Tibet Plateau for three years. The approximate number of Tibetan wild asses in each of the different areas of Gaize County was obtained. The number of Tibetan wild asses in Gaize Town, Xianqian Township, Gumu Township, Chabu Township, Mami Township, Wuma Township and Dongcuo Township is 855, 3458, 2358, 1453, 743, 943 and 647, respectively. By studying the environmental preferences of Tibetan wild asses and analyzing the results of the belt transect survey, the random forest model can accurately estimate the number of Tibetan wild asses in Gaize County of Chang Tang Plateau.     

Variations in the Drought Severity Index in Response to Climate Change on the Tibetan Plateau

Quantifying the relationship between the drought severity index and climate factors is crucial for predicting drought risk in situations characterized by climate change. However, variations in drought risk are not readily discernible under conditions of climate change, and this is particularly the case on the Tibetan Plateau. This study examines the correlations between the annual drought severity index (DSI) and 14 climate factors (including temperature, precipitation, humidity, wind speed, and hours of sunshine factors), on the Tibetan Plateau from 2000 to 2011. Spatial average DSI increased with precipitation and minimum relative humidity, while it decreased as the hours of sunshine increased. The correlation between DSI and climate factors varied with vegetation types. In alpine meadows, the correlation of the spatial DSI average with the percentage of sunshine and hours of sunshine (P<0.001) was higher compared to that in alpine steppes (P<0.05). Similarly, average vapor pressure and minimum relative humidity had significant positive effects on spatial DSI in alpine meadows, but had insignificant effects in alpine steppes. The magnitude of DSI change correlated negatively with temperature, precipitation, and vapor pressure, and positively with wind speed and sunshine. This demonstrates that the correlation between drought and climate change on the Tibetan Plateau is dependent on the type of ecosystem.