Spatial and Temporal Changes of Landscape Patterns and Ecosystem Services Values in Mountainous-Hilly-Plain Complex Terrain Areas in Southwestern China

Spatial land use structure plays a significant role in sustaining multiple ecological processes and functions. Taking Sichuan Province characterized by mountainous-hilly-plain complex terrain as the study site, this study proposed an innovative research framework for analyzing spatial characteristics of land use and assessing ecosystem service values under land use changes based on lacunarity estimation, landscape pattern index analysis, fitting regression model, and assigned ecosystem service values per unit area for each land use method. The results suggested that the spatial heterogeneity and cluster of land uses occurred at different scales. There were strong relationships between lacunarity values and the distribution patterns of individual land uses. The climate, social, and economic driving factors were the key factors in shaping the landscape's spatial pattern. The total values of the ecosystem services were approximately 11,011, 10,827, 10,786, 10,789, 10,781, 10,787, and 10,788 billion yuan in 1980, 1990, 1995, 2000, 2005, 2010, and 2015, respectively. The soil formation and retention, water supply, biodiversity protection, gas regulation, waste treatment, and climate regulation were the six top-ranking ecosystem services, contributing 85% of the total ecosystem services. The critical areas for management purposes were identified depending on the heterogeneity of ecosystem service value. This work highlights research avenues to advance the landscape ecology and ecosystem service framework as an operational basis for regional ecosystem-based management.