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RUNOFF SHRINKAGE IN THE WUYUR RIVER BASIN, NORTH‐EAST CHINA, AND ITS INFLUENCE ON THE SUCCESSION OF SALINE MARSH IN THE LOWER REACHES
Author(s) -
Jinming Luo,
Fan Yang,
Yongjie Wang,
Lin Bai,
Fugang Liu,
Zhiliang Wang
Publication year - 2019
Publication title -
irrigation and drainage
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.421
H-Index - 38
eISSN - 1531-0361
pISSN - 1531-0353
DOI - 10.1002/ird.2388
Subject(s) - marsh , wetland , environmental science , surface runoff , hydrology (agriculture) , population , ecological succession , disturbance (geology) , water level , drainage basin , physical geography , ecology , geography , geology , biology , geotechnical engineering , paleontology , demography , cartography , sociology
Drought induced by global climate change and local human disturbance is having a significant impact on the succession of inland saline marshes. This study aims to examine the causes of rapid land degradation in China's Zhalong wetland over the past 65 years (1951–2015) using the Mann–Kendall rank test. Results indicate that local human disturbance (mainly water diversion) is the key detrimental factor in marsh degradation. Water diversion in the upper reaches of the Wuyur river basin has changed the hydrological regime and caused significant water deficit in the Zhalong wetland, thereby leading to rapid shrinkage of the marsh. An increasing runoff trend with an average of 7.44 × 10 8 m 3 was observed in the upper reaches from 1983 to 2015. In contrast, the runoff in the lower reaches had significantly decreased from 8.5 × 10 8 m 3 to 3 × 10 8 m 3 in recent years ( P < 0.05), given the water consumed by local anthropogenic activities in the upper reaches. The large water deficit in the lower reaches reduced water storage and caused rapid development of soil sodification, that is, the area of Halaquepts increased from 170 km 2 in 1979 to 260 km 2 in 2010, in which large areas emerged in the core area of the wetland. Land degradation decreased the habitat of the red‐crowned crane ( Grus japonensis ). This condition may be an important contributor to the population decline of rare birds and biodiversity loss. © 2019 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.