Spatial heterogeneity of cultural ecosystem services in grand canal rural heritage sites: A community gradient framework using participatory mapping

• A multi-method framework captures rural CES patterns across community gradients. • Core communities exhibit CES clustering shaped by land use and landscape features. • CES mobility is shaped by both site importance and proximity to residences. • CES satisfaction declines from CC, IC to PC, with RV most needed yet undersupplied. • Perceptions differ by age/education/occupation, requiring gradient-based management. Rural heritage landscapes provide vital Cultural Ecosystem Services (CES) for sustainability, but local stakeholder roles and CES spatial variations across community gradients are often overlooked, causing governance deficiencies and conflicts. To address this gap, this study proposes a multidimensional framework that integrates participatory mapping, semi-structured interviews, and mixed spatial analytical techniques for analyzing rural CES distribution patterns and their associations with landscape features across community gradients. The study area, Shaobo Town, is a rural heritage area along China’s Grand Canal, encompassing 22 rural communities. The findings reveal that (1) Four types of CES were examined—cultural heritage value, natural aesthetic value, recreational value, and sense of place—all of which exhibited notable spatial aggregation, especially in core communities (CCs). CES preferences were strongly linked to land use and landscape features. (2) Resident engagement with CES demonstrated clear spatial mobility across communities, with gravitational strength determined by both the perceived importance of CES sites and their proximity to residences. (3) CES satisfaction generally declined along the community gradient from Core (CC) to Interconnected (IC) to Peripheral (PC) communities, influenced by location, landscape, and environmental quality factors, with Recreational Value (RV) being the most urgently needed but undersupplied. (4) Significant perceptual differences were identified across age groups, education levels, and occupations. Based on these findings, we advocate for integrating community gradients into spatial CES frameworks in rural heritage contexts. By aligning land use attributes, landscape features, and population-specific perceptual characteristics with bottom-up needs, this research offers both theoretical and practical guidance for promoting CES equity and achieving sustainable landscape governance in global rural heritage regions.