Study on Wetland Evolution and Landscape Pattern Changes in the Shaanxi Section of the Loess Plateau in the Past 40 Years

The Shaanxi section is the central region of the Loess Plateau. Its unique wetland environment plays an indispensable role in regional ecological environment security. Clarifying the characteristics of wetland changes in the region is an important prerequisite for wetland management and protection. This study, based on the remote sensing data of the Shaanxi section of the Loess Plateau, analyzed the changes in the wetland area and type transfer in this region in 1980, 1990, 2000, 2010 and 2020 using the wetland dynamic degree model, the Markov transfer matrix, the landscape pattern index, and centroid analysis. The results showed that, from 1980 to 2020, the total wetland area and natural wetland area in the Shaanxi section of the Loess Plateau continued to shrink, decreasing by 79.35 km2 and 80.50 km2, respectively, while the artificial wetland area increased by 1.14 km2. Among the regions, Xi’an experienced the most significant reduction, with a total decrease of 83.04 km2 over 40 years, followed by Xianyang City, where the wetland area decreased by 6.50 km2. In contrast, the wetland areas of Yulin City, Weinan City, Yan’an City, Baoji City and Tongchuan City increased slightly. From 1980 to 2020, the change in the wetland types in the Shaanxi section of the Loess Plateau was mainly characterized by transfers between beach lands and river canals. River canals are the primary type of wetland in this region. The degree of fragmentation is the highest in reservoir potholes, while marshes have the largest clumpiness index. Over the same period, the centroid of the wetlands in the Shaanxi section of the Loess Plateau moved from south to north as a whole, although, between 1990 and 2000, the centroid position remained relatively stable. These results provide a theoretical basis and data support for wetland monitoring and protection in the Shaanxi section of the Loess Plateau and also provide a reference for the protection and sustainable development of other inland wetland resources in arid and semi-arid regions.