Spatiotemporal dynamics and driving mechanisms of alpine peatland wetlands in the eastern Qinghai–Tibet Plateau based on a Vision Transformer model

• ViT model achieved high accuracy in wetland classification, with DEM’s contribution quantified. • Alpine wetlands declined over three decades, with directional shifts among wetland types. • DEM was the most influential factor shaping wetland distribution and spatial organization. • Interactive driver effects show wetland dynamics driven by natural and anthropogenic forces. The Zoige Wetland, located in the eastern Qinghai–Tibet Plateau, is the world’s largest alpine peatland. Understanding its spatiotemporal dynamics and driving mechanisms is essential for sustaining fragile plateau ecosystems. In this study, we applied a Vision Transformer (ViT) model to classify Landsat imagery from 1990 to 2020 and investigated wetland dynamics in terms of areal change, land cover transitions, and centroid migration. To explore driving forces, we employed an optimized geographical detector model to quantify the effects of climatic, natural, and anthropogenic factors. Results indicate that the total wetland area declined by 3.11 % (207.36 km2) over three decades, with water bodies and swamps expanding by 48.11 % and 26.92 %, respectively, while swamp meadows decreased by 11.59 %. Centroid analysis further revealed consistent southeastward migration of water bodies and swamps, slight northeastward shifts of swamp meadows, and minor northwestward movement of alpine meadows, highlighting distinct directional patterns among wetland types. The Digital Elevation Model (DEM) was identified as the dominant factor shaping wetland distribution, while strong interactive effects were observed among DEM, wind speed, temperature, and GDP. These findings reveal not only pronounced spatial restructuring but also substantial temporal variability of alpine peatlands, providing robust evidence to inform wetland conservation, the restoration of degraded ecosystems, and strategies for long-term ecological sustainability on the Qinghai–Tibet Plateau.