Connectivity, aggregation and structure: Exploring the effects of landscape fragmentation on ecosystem health in national parks — A case study of Huangshan National Park
5 affiliations
- 1College of Economics and Management, Nanjing Forestry University, Nanjing 210037, China; Corresponding author.
- 2Department of Park, Recreation, and Tourism Management, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA 16802, USA
- 3College of Tourism, Yangzhou Polytechnic University, Yangzhou 225009, China
- 4School of Geography and Ocean Science, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210023, China
- 5School of Culture and Tourism, Hefei University, Hefei 230601, China
Abstract
Assessing the impact of human activities on ecosystem health is essential for balancing conservation and development within national parks. Current research often examines human-induced landscape fragmentation through a single perspective, overlooking its non-linear relationship with ecosystem health. Taking Huangshan National Park as a study area, this study adapts the Vigor-Service-Resilience (VSR) assessment model and a three-dimensional (connectivity, aggregation, and structure) landscape fragmentation index to the national park context. On this basis, Boosted Regression Trees (BRT) were employed to identify the heterogeneous and non-linear effects of tourism-driven fragmentation on ecosystem health. The results indicated that: (1) During the study period, ecosystem health in Huangshan National Park showed a steady upward trend, while landscape fragmentation exhibited relatively small fluctuations overall. Spatially, ecosystem health displayed a “high in the core, low in the periphery” pattern, whereas landscape fragmentation showed the opposite “low in the core, high in the periphery” distribution. (2) Ecosystem health was significantly negatively correlated with all three fragmentation dimensions in both space and time, positively correlated with indicators of patch integrity and aggregation, and negatively correlated with indicators of patch isolation and fragmentation. (3) Different fragmentation dimensions exerted significant non-linear threshold effects on ecosystem health, with the connectivity dimension exhibiting stepwise threshold effects and increasing marginal returns, the aggregation dimension displaying bidirectional responses with post-threshold stabilization, and the structural dimension showing sensitive thresholds with response lags. Despite the 30 m resolution constraint, this study elucidates the multi-dimensional, non-linear mechanisms through which tourism-driven fragmentation affects ecosystem health, providing a scientific basis for optimizing landscape patterns and adaptive management in national parks.
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BibTeX
@article{ma2026connectivity,
title = {{Connectivity, aggregation and structure: Exploring the effects of landscape fragmentation on ecosystem health in national parks — A case study of Huangshan National Park}},
author = {Xiaobin Ma and Tian Wang and Ruikuan Liu and Jinhe Zhang and Peijia Wang},
journal = {Ecological Indicators},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.1016/j.ecolind.2026.115509},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolind.2026.115509},
note = {CC BY},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Connectivity, aggregation and structure: Exploring the effects of landscape fragmentation on ecosystem health in national parks — A case study of Huangshan National Park
AU - Xiaobin Ma
AU - Tian Wang
AU - Ruikuan Liu
AU - Jinhe Zhang
AU - Peijia Wang
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/23
JO - Ecological Indicators
DO - 10.1016/j.ecolind.2026.115509
UR - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolind.2026.115509
AB - Assessing the impact of human activities on ecosystem health is essential for balancing conservation and development within national parks. Current research often examines human-induced landscape fragmentation through a single perspective, overlooking its non-linear relationship with ecosystem health. Taking Huangshan National Park as a study area, this study adapts the Vigor-Service-Resilience (VSR) assessment model and a three-dimensional (connectivity, aggregation, and structure) landscape fragmentation index to the national park context. On this basis, Boosted Regression Trees (BRT) were employed to identify the heterogeneous and non-linear effects of tourism-driven fragmentation on ecosystem health. The results indicated that: (1) During the study period, ecosystem health in Huangshan National Park showed a steady upward trend, while landscape fragmentation exhibited relatively small fluctuations overall. Spatially, ecosystem health displayed a “high in the core, low in the periphery” pattern, whereas landscape fragmentation showed the opposite “low in the core, high in the periphery” distribution. (2) Ecosystem health was significantly negatively correlated with all three fragmentation dimensions in both space and time, positively correlated with indicators of patch integrity and aggregation, and negatively correlated with indicators of patch isolation and fragmentation. (3) Different fragmentation dimensions exerted significant non-linear threshold effects on ecosystem health, with the connectivity dimension exhibiting stepwise threshold effects and increasing marginal returns, the aggregation dimension displaying bidirectional responses with post-threshold stabilization, and the structural dimension showing sensitive thresholds with response lags. Despite the 30 m resolution constraint, this study elucidates the multi-dimensional, non-linear mechanisms through which tourism-driven fragmentation affects ecosystem health, providing a scientific basis for optimizing landscape patterns and adaptive management in national parks.
SN - 1470-160X
SN - 1872-7034
ER -