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Arid Land Geography ›› 2022, Vol. 45 ›› Issue (5): 1570-1578.doi: 10.12118/j.issn.1000-6060.2022.027

• Biology and Pedology • Previous Articles     Next Articles

Relationship between soil moisture content and topography-vegetation factors in different types of dunes in the Tengger Desert

SUN Yanhui1(),ZHANG Dinghai1(),ZHANG Zhishan2   

  1. 1. Center for Quantitative Biology, College of Science, Gansu Agricultural University, Lanzhou 730070, Gansu, China
    2. Shapotou Desert Research and Experimental Station, Northwest Institute of Eco-Environment and Resources, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Lanzhou 730000, Gansu, China
  • Received:2022-01-18 Revised:2022-03-11 Online:2022-09-25 Published:2022-10-20
  • Contact: Dinghai ZHANG E-mail:908937337@qq.com;zhangdh@gsau.edu.cn

Abstract:

Soil moisture is a major ecological limiting factor in desert areas, and the distribution of soil moisture is influenced by numerous factors, such as climate, topography, and vegetation. In this paper, three types of sand dunes (fixed dunes, semi-fixed dunes, and mobile sand dunes) at the Shapotou of Tengger Desert, China are studied. A comprehensive analysis of the distribution characteristics of the soil moisture in different parts of the dune and at different depths and the relationship of the soil moisture distribution with topographical and vegetation-related factors was conducted using analysis of variance (ANOVA) and redundancy analysis (RDA). The results show that: (1) Soil moisture at depths of 0-300 cm in different types of sand dunes increased with depth, and the degree of fluctuation of the soil moisture was greater in the surface layer than that in the middle and deep layers. (2) There is no significant difference in soil moisture between different parts of fixed dunes and different depths, and soil moisture on the windward slopes and at bottom of semi-fixed dunes and mobile sand dunes is higher than that on the leeward slopes and top of the dunes. (3) The soil moisture in fixed dunes is less influenced by topographical and vegetation-related factors than that in semi-fixed dunes and mobile sand dunes; the main factors affecting soil moisture in fixed dunes are slope orientation, height difference, and shrub abundance. (4) Overwhelmingly, topographical and vegetation-related factors were found to have a negative relationship with soil moisture for both semi-fixed dunes and mobile sand dunes in the study area. This study is important for the understanding of the distribution and characteristics of soil moisture in the study area as well as for the ecological restoration and reconstruction in desert areas. Based on the results of this study, it is suggested that the future construction of sand-fixing vegetation in the study area should consider corresponding wind and sand-fixing measures; research should also be undertaken into establishing a scientifically derived distribution of sand-fixing plants.

Key words: Tengger Desert, soil moisture, topography factor, vegetation factor, redundancy analysis (RDA)