Submit to Special Issue Submit Abstract to Special Issue Review for Land Propose a Special Issue

Journal Browser

► Journal Browser

Effects of Human-Environment Interaction on Land Ecosystem since Holocene II

Print Special Issue Flyer
Special Issue Editors
Special Issue Information
Keywords
Related Special Issue
Published Papers

A special issue of Land (ISSN 2073-445X). This special issue belongs to the section "Land–Climate Interactions".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 26 July 2024 | Viewed by 6387

Share This Special Issue

Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Guanghui Dong

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor

MOE Key Laboratory of Western China’s Environmental System, College of Earth & Environmental Sciences, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou 730000, China
Interests: environmental archaeology; holocene; human-land interaction
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Dr. Shanjia Zhang

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor

College of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou 730000, China
Interests: environmental archaeology; climate change; anthropocene

Dr. Zhiping Zhang

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor

School of Geography, Nanjing Normal University, Nanjing 210046, China
Interests: paleoclimatology and paleolimnology, with special focus on climate change and its impacts

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

We are pleased to announce the Special Issue of Land on “Effects of Human-Environment Interaction on Land Ecosystem since Holocene II”.

Human-environment interaction increasing and largely affects the ecosystem by complex ways in Holocene. For example, agriculture, pasture, and the exploitation of natural resource have transformed biodiversity and ecosystem functions in the context of climate warming in worldwide. Understanding the interplay effects of human activity and environment will be necessary to mitigate the profoundly influence of global change for ecosystem and human beings. However, the process and consequences of these changes for ecosystem and human society are unclear, especially in the past.

The interactive changes of humans and environment include impacts of environment change on human activity and effects of human activity on environment. The process of climate and human activity interplay affects the ecosystem across different spatial and temporal scales. For this special issue, we are interested in contributions that link changing climate, ecology, society, and human activity in the past, examining any key process, pattern, and effects from a wide range of perspectives (i.e., geographical, ecological, archaeological, etc.).

Suggested topics include but are not limited to:

Interaction of environment and human activity;
Human subsistence practice;
Paleoecology;
Effects of climate, agriculture, pasture, and exploitation of natural resource on ecosystem;
Effects of human activity and environment interaction on ecosystem.

Prof. Dr. Guanghui Dong
Dr. Shanjia Zhang
Dr. Zhiping Zhang
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Land is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

climate change
human activity
human-environment interaction
ecosystem
holocene
subsistence strategy

Related Special Issue

Effects of Human-Environment Interaction on Land Ecosystem since Holocene in Land (11 articles)

Published Papers (8 papers)

Download All Papers

Research

17 pages, 5544 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Human Impacts on Holocene Vegetation and Wetland Degradation in the Lower Pearl River, Southern China

by Yaze Zhang, Yanwei Zheng, Qinghua Gong, Shuqing Fu, Cong Chen, Yongjie Tang, Xiao Zhang, Qiuchi Wan, Kangyou Huang and Zhuo Zheng

Land 2024, 13(4), 530; https://doi.org/10.3390/land13040530 - 16 Apr 2024

Viewed by 652

Abstract

Reconstructing Holocene vegetation history and human impact on vegetation is critical for understanding past interactions between humans and nature. This study concentrates on the lower West River area in Southern China, offering high-resolution reconstructions of vegetation changes over the last 9000 years. Our findings reveal that during the Holocene Climatic Optimum (9–5 ka BP), the area was predominantly covered by dense evergreen broad-leaved forests. Around 5.1 ka BP, the emergence of marsh forests, as evidenced by abundant pollen of Glyptostrobus and in situ buried woods and roots, indicated a transition towards a wetland ecosystem. Notably, a thriving wetland environment and high production of peat deposits dating from 4.3 ka to 2.5 ka BP reflect the continuous drop of lake levels and the formation of swamps driven by a climatic pattern marked by decreased precipitation, potentially linked to a reduction in summer monsoon intensity during the latter part of the Holocene. This period of wetland expansion also coincides with the earliest evidence of rice cultivation in Southern China, suggesting a relationship between agricultural development and regional landscape changes. Additionally, millennial-scale paleo-megafloods are not only identified by lithological features but also by pollen taxa and principal component analysis. Despite the temporary disruptions of the marsh forest, it demonstrated resilience, quickly recovering within decades. By approximately 2.5 ka BP, a significant increase in rice-type Poaceae pollen and Pteridophyte spores, alongside the sharp decline of Glyptostrobus and a decrease in arboreal taxa, were observed. This shift in pollen spectra, coupled with a PC1 curve of principal component analysis, points to intensified human activity as a primary driver behind the collapse of the local wetland ecosystem. These findings align with regional evidence from the Pearl River Delta and coastal Southern China, highlighting extensive human intervention in natural forests and the onset of large-scale agriculture post-2.5 ka BP. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Effects of Human-Environment Interaction on Land Ecosystem since Holocene II)

► Show Figures

Figure 1

14 pages, 3751 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Radiocarbon-Refined Archaeological Chronology and the History of Human Activity in the Southern Tarim Basin

by Xiaofang Ma, Xingjun Hu and Menghan Qiu

Land 2024, 13(4), 477; https://doi.org/10.3390/land13040477 - 08 Apr 2024

Viewed by 476

Abstract

Famous for Taklimakan, the world’s second largest sandy desert, the Tarim Basin in Xinjiang has long attracted researchers from various fields to investigate its paleoenvironment and antiquity. The southern part of this basin is an ideal region in which to investigate the interactions between humans and the environment due to its fragile habitat and prosperous ancient civilizations. However, the lack of direct radiocarbon dating data has caused the chronologies of some of the archaeological sites to be debatable, which hinders our ability to reconstruct historical patterns of human activity and further understand, in a coherent manner, their interaction with the environment. This study reports 25 new radiocarbon dates acquired from ten undated archaeological sites in the southern Taklimakan Desert in order to refine their chronologies. Based on this, a radiocarbon dataset was established to reveal the trajectory of human activity with the support of Bayesian chronological modeling. The results indicate a two-millennium continuous flourishing of the local society since the beginning of the first millennium BCE, as well as a peak of human activity during the Tang Dynasty (618–907 CE). The distinct trajectory of human activity in the southern Tarim Basin revealed by this study provides a solid foundation for further assessments of human–environment interaction in the Tarim Basin and along the Silk Road. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Effects of Human-Environment Interaction on Land Ecosystem since Holocene II)

► Show Figures

Figure 1

14 pages, 7704 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Alteration in Plant-Based Subsistence and Its Influencing Factors from Late Neolithic to Historical Periods in Hexi Corridor, Northwestern China: Archaeobotanical Evidence

by Wenyu Wei, Zhilin Shi, Yongxiu Lu, Linyao Du, Junmin Zhang, Guomu Zheng and Minmin Ma

Land 2024, 13(4), 419; https://doi.org/10.3390/land13040419 - 26 Mar 2024

Viewed by 543

Abstract

The spatio-temporal evolution of human subsistence strategies and their driving force in prehistoric Eurasia has received increasing attention with the rapid development of archaeobotanical, zooarchaeological, and isotopic research in recent decades, while studies focusing on the historical periods are relatively absent. In the Hexi Corridor in northwestern China, which has served as a hub for trans-Eurasian exchange since the late prehistoric period, archaeobotanical data have been reported from numerous Neolithic and Bronze Age sites, as well as sites from the Wei and Jin Dynasties (220–420 BCE) to the Yuan Dynasty (1271–1368 BCE). However, no archaeobotanical study has been conducted at sites of the Han Dynasty (202 BCE–220 CE), a crucial period connecting prehistoric and historical eras. In this study, we identified 32475 plant remains, including 31,463 broomcorn millets, 233 foxtail millets, and 780 weeds, from the Shuangdun North Beacon Tower (SDNBT) site of the Han Dynasty at the western end of the Hexi Corridor, suggesting that millets played a prominent part in human subsistence strategies in the area during this period. In addition, sheep, chicken, dog, horse, and rodent remains were also collected at the site. By applying a multi-disciplinary approach, we detected a remarkable change in plant-based subsistence in the ancient Hexi Corridor. Specifically, the importance of millet crops, compared with other crops (especially barley and wheat), in plant-based subsistence declined from the Late Neolithic to the Bronze Age; it apparently improved during the Han and Sui-Tang Dynasties (581–907 CE), when agricultural empires controlled the area, and then declined again during the Wei, Jin, Northern, and Southern Dynasties (220–581 CE) and the Song-Yuan Dynasty (960–1368 CE), when nomadic regimes controlled the area. Climate change, trans-Eurasian exchanges, and geopolitical shifts influenced the diachronic change in plant-based subsistence from the Late Neolithic to the historical periods in the Hexi Corridor. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Effects of Human-Environment Interaction on Land Ecosystem since Holocene II)

► Show Figures

Figure 1

18 pages, 4001 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Time-Transgressive Onset of Holocene Climate Optimum in Arid Central Asia and Its Association with Cultural Exchanges

by Zhen Wang, Xiaokang Liu, Haichao Xie, Shengqian Chen, Jianhui Chen, Haipeng Wang, Meihong Ma and Fahu Chen

Land 2024, 13(3), 356; https://doi.org/10.3390/land13030356 - 11 Mar 2024

Viewed by 897

Abstract

Arid central Asia (ACA) is dominated by mid-latitude westerlies and characterized by a climate optimum (a relatively humid climate that has supported the development of human culture) in clear contrast with the climate of monsoonal Asia during the Holocene. Significantly, whether the onset of the Holocene Climate Optimum (HCO) had an impact on cultural exchanges along the ancient Silk Road remains unknown. In this study, we compared the onset of the HCO in different parts of the vast ACA region by referring to a variety of previously established paleo-moisture/precipitation records. Intriguingly, we found significant differences in the onset of the HCO between the western and eastern parts of ACA. The onset of the HCO in the western part of ACA (i.e., to the west of the Tianshan Mountains) mainly occurred at ~8 ka BP (1 ka = 1000 cal yr BP). In contrast, the onset of the HCO occurred at ~6 ka in northern Xinjiang and even as late as ~5 ka in southern Xinjiang; this is a delay of 2–3 thousand years compared with the western part of ACA. These results likely indicate that the onset of the HCO occurred in a time-transgressive manner in ACA, namely, ‘early in the west but late in the east’. On the other hand, we found that the onset of the HCO in the western part of ACA may have resulted in the inception of wheat planting and the development of agricultural civilization and that the onset of the HCO in northern Xinjiang may have prompted the southward migration of Afanasievo culture after ~5 ka. Additionally, the initiation of the HCO in southern Xinjiang could provide an environmental basis for the spread and planting of wheat and millet in this area after ~4.5 ka. We speculate that the spatial differences in the onset of the HCO in ACA are mainly related to temporal changes in the intensity and position of the mid-latitude westerly jet. Although the increase in insolation and reduction in the global ice volume would have led to an increase in the water vapor feeding the western part of ACA around 8 ka, the climate in the eastern part of ACA (namely, the Xinjiang region) could have only become humid after 6 ka when the westerlies were intensified and became positioned in the south. Moreover, the delayed HCO in southern Xinjiang probably benefited from the stronger westerly winds that appeared around 5 ka, which could have overcome the influence of the tall topography of the Tianshan Mountains. Therefore, in addition to external forcing (i.e., insolation), the ocean–atmospheric teleconnection, the regional topography, and their connection to the climate system are important in determining the spatial differences in the time-transgressive onset of the HCO in ACA. Our findings contribute to understanding the spatio-temporal characteristics of the hydroclimate in regions with complex eco-environmental systems and a diverse history of human activity. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Effects of Human-Environment Interaction on Land Ecosystem since Holocene II)

► Show Figures

Figure 1

18 pages, 6492 KiB

Open AccessArticle

GIS-Based Analysis of the Regional Typology of Neolithic Archaeological Cultures in the Taihu Lake Region of China

by Lin Yang, Yang Zhao, Wenjing Yuan and Xin Jia

Land 2024, 13(2), 244; https://doi.org/10.3390/land13020244 - 16 Feb 2024

Viewed by 686

Abstract

The study of the evolution of regional typology of archaeological cultures is essential in understanding the trajectory of cultural evolution from a temporal and spatial perspective. In this paper, we focused on the Taihu Lake region, one of the six major regional typologies of Neolithic archaeological cultures in China. By utilizing archaeological site data from the Neolithic Era in this region, our study investigates the evolution of typologies in archaeological cultures at both regional and sub-regional scales. From a broad perspective, quantitative methods were used to explore the cultural evolution process in the Taihu Lake region. The degree of social integration and intercultural inheritance can be reflected through the size of the site and the superimposition of cultural layers. In addition, climate and environmental data were combined to investigate its driving factors. Moreover, GIS (Geographic Information System) analysis methods were used to cluster and partition the cultures in the Taihu Lake region. By identifying distinct groups of sites, it is possible to deconstruct and analyze the interior of the cultures to study their distribution patterns and to explore the exchanges and expansions within the cultures. By integrating both research approaches, our study provides a comprehensive analysis of the evolutionary characteristics of the regional typology of archaeological cultures within the Taihu Lake region. These findings contribute to the development of quantitative methods for studying the evolutionary trajectory of archaeological cultural systems. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Effects of Human-Environment Interaction on Land Ecosystem since Holocene II)

► Show Figures

Figure 1

23 pages, 8826 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Interactive Effects of Ecological Land Agglomeration and Habitat Quality on Soil Erosion in the Jinsha River Basin, China

by Bo Wen, Chenxi Liu, Xu Tian, Qi Zhang, Shaolie Huang and Yanyuan Zhang

Land 2024, 13(2), 229; https://doi.org/10.3390/land13020229 - 12 Feb 2024

Viewed by 671

Abstract

Soil erosion is a significant global environmental issue and a crucial aspect of global change. Exploring the interactive effect of ecological land agglomeration and habitat quality on soil erosion can effectively guide the positive intervention of ecological restoration activities. The study calculated the comprehensive ecological land agglomeration with Fragstats 4.2 and the habitat quality with InVEST 3.7.0 for the years 2000, 2010, and 2020 within the Jinsha River Basin in Yunnan, China. In addition, the RUSLE model was utilized to calculate soil erosion in the study area. The Geographic and Temporally Weighted Regression (GTWR) model was employed to obtain the regression coefficients and their spatial and temporal variations. The findings of this study revealed the following: (1) During the study period, there was an overall 29.06% reduction in the soil erosion modulus with an annual rate of 1.70% reduction on average, accompanied by an increase in both the comprehensive ecological land agglomeration and habitat quality. Soil erosion was more severe in the eastern regions than in the western ones and the other two indicators were higher in the northeast and southwest. (2) The GTWR results demonstrate that comprehensive ecological land agglomeration and habitat quality were negatively correlated with soil erosion, with results of −0.1383 and 0.0021, respectively. However, in northwest regions, there was a significant positive correlation between habitat quality and soil erosion. (3) The interaction term between comprehensive ecological land agglomeration and habitat quality was significantly negatively correlated with soil erosion with a result of −0.0299, and the interaction coefficients have regional variations. This study offers valuable guidance for land-use development and soil and water conservation in the Jinsha River Basin. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Effects of Human-Environment Interaction on Land Ecosystem since Holocene II)

► Show Figures

Figure 1

15 pages, 13537 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Anthropogenic Impact on the Terrestrial Environment in the Lake Dian Basin, Southwestern China during the Bronze Age and Ming–Qing period

by Peilun Liu, Fengwen Liu, Gang Li, Yuejiao Li, Huihui Cao and Xiaorui Li

Land 2024, 13(2), 228; https://doi.org/10.3390/land13020228 - 12 Feb 2024

Viewed by 795

Abstract

The role of human activity in shaping the terrestrial environment has been a core scientific issue of interest across various disciplines. However, it remains unclear whether there are significant differences in the patterns of the anthropogenic impact on the terrestrial environment in terms of spatial and temporal dimensions, and we are yet to identify the underlying factors that have driven it. Here, we present an analysis of sporopollen and geochemical proxies from a section of the Anjiangbei site (AJB) on the Yunnan Plateau, spanning the Ming–Qing period, in order to explore the spatio-temporal variation in the anthropogenic impact on the terrestrial environment in the Lake Dian basin. Integrating the reported multidisciplinary evidence, we aim to reveal the influencing factors of anthropogenic impact. Our results show that there were remarkable differences in anthropogenic impact on the terrestrial environment in the Lake Dian basin between the Late Bronze Age and the Ming–Qing period. Changes in crop vegetation and the forest were all affected by human activity in the Lake Dian basin during the two periods, and were more evident during the Ming–Qing period. The heavy metal pollution in the soil was obvious during the Ming–Qing period. The increase in the intensity of human activity, especially the rise in population, could be attributed to changes in the hydrological environment in the Lake Dian basin during the Late Bronze Age and to geopolitical change during the Ming–Qing period. This study reveals the different patterns in human impact on the terrestrial environment in the Lake Dian basin during the Late Bronze Age and the Ming–Qing period, providing new evidence to enable a deeper understanding of past human–environment interactions on the Yunnan Plateau. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Effects of Human-Environment Interaction on Land Ecosystem since Holocene II)

► Show Figures

Figure 1

16 pages, 16033 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Variables and a Validation Data Analysis to Improve the Prehistoric Cultivated Land Predictive Precision of Yulin, Northern Shaanxi, China

by Xinyuan Kong, Jianxin Cui and Yikai Li

Land 2024, 13(2), 153; https://doi.org/10.3390/land13020153 - 28 Jan 2024

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 792

Abstract

The distribution of cultivated land in prehistoric times was primarily influenced by natural conditions and population density. This article presents a case study on modern cultivated land simulation to analyze the potential impact of variable selection and validation data accuracy on model precision. Additionally, methods were explored to enhance the accuracy of prehistoric cultivated land simulation. Seven natural variables and one settlement density variable were selected to simulate the distribution of cultivated land based on a Binary Logistic Regression model. The simulated results were then compared with real land use data from 1985, which are commonly used as validation data for prehistoric farmland reconstruction. The findings revealed that all eight selected parameters could explain the distribution of cultivated land in the research area, with annual precipitation being the most influential factor. The initial prediction accuracy was relatively low at 65.8%, with a Kappa coefficient of 0.316. Several factors were identified as affecting the prediction accuracy. Firstly, the scale effect diminished the impact of the slope and elevation on cultivated land distribution, and errors were introduced in the method used to calculate the distance from residential areas. Secondly, the loess hilly area in the southeastern part of the research area overpredicted cultivated land due to insufficient data on actual residential land demand. Lastly, strong human activity since the 1950s has altered the natural distribution of cultivated land, resulting in poor consistency ratings. To address these issues, a batch modification method was employed to correct the 1985 data. The validation of the prediction model using the corrected data demonstrated a significant improvement in accuracy. Therefore, it is recommended to use the revised 1985 land use data for verifying prehistoric cultivated land simulation in the region. However, further research is required to mitigate the impact of the first two errors. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Effects of Human-Environment Interaction on Land Ecosystem since Holocene II)

► Show Figures