Landscape Heterogeneity

Landscape heterogeneity refers to the degree of spatial or temporal variation of elements and their structure and function in a landscape. There are three main points in this definition: ① Elements: In landscape, elements, as the spatial units of landscape, are regarded as ecosystems. The element itself has certain attributes, including element nature, type, shape (such as patch, corridor, matrix), quantity, size, etc.; ② the structure and function of the key elements: the element structure refers to the spatial arrangement of the elements (decentralized, linear, agglomerated, specific combination, etc.); the element function refers to the interaction between the key elements and the elements, which usually depends on various flows, such as material flow, information flow, energy flow, etc.; ③ Degree of variation: the degree of variation refers to the differences of elements themselves and the differences of elements' structures and functions. The differences of the elements themselves cause the cables to be unevenly distributed in space or time, thus forming different spatial arrangements and different interactions. Two or more landscape elements constitute landscape heterogeneity. Heterogeneity is the fundamental attribute of landscape, which will eventually form a certain landscape mosaic structure, namely landscape pattern.

Edited and translated by Zhang Yifei