Landscape pattern change and driving force of blowout distribution in the Hulun Buir Sandy Grassland

The land coverage pattern changes for the past 50 years in a typical region of the Hulun Buir Sandy Grassland were interpreted and analyzed based on a series of remote sensing images in 1959, 2002, 2004 and 2009. The temporal and spatial changes of landscape patterns were revealed and the driving forces were analyzed. The results show that all land coverage types had large variable amplitudes. The grassland area decreased, whereas other areas increased. Owing to implementation of artificial sand fixation from 2004 to 2009, the areas of flowing blowouts and depositional area decreased by 71,369 and 128,835 m², respectively. The average patch area reduced, but the number of blowouts increased, fractal dimension increased, and blowout structure became complex. The fragmentation index increased, whereas contagion index decreased. Driving force analysis shows that human factors such as overgrazing are slightly larger than natural factors of increased temperature and decreased precipitation.