Abstract
In mountainous areas, rock fragments (RFs) are a common feature on the soil surface and in topsoil. Few studies, however, have investigated the spatial distribution of RFs and the relevant mechanisms underpinning their distribution on steep hillslopes, especially in karst regions. We have collected and measured the RF cover, size, and content at the soil surface and within the topsoil of secondary forest, man-made forest, and non-forest land hillslopes in a karst region in Yunnan Province, southwest China. The results revealed no significant relationships between slope position and mean total RF coverage, median diameter (D50), and mean total volumetric RF in topsoil within the three karst hillslopes covered by different types of vegetation. A limited effect of vegetation on the spatial distribution of RFs on the hillslopes was identified. However, the variation in RFs in the topsoil between the top and bottom slopes was greater than that at the surface between the top and bottom slopes, implying that underground leakage was greater than surface runoff.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Atalay I (1997) Red Mediterranean soils in some karstic regions of Taurus mountains, Turkey. Catena 28:247–260
Avery BW, Bascomb CL (1981) Soil survey laboratory methods. Agriculture Press
Chen HS, Liu JW, Wang KL, Zhang W (2011) Spatial distribution of rock fragments on steep hillslopes in karst region of northwest Guangxi, China. Catena 84:21–28
Dai Q, Liu Z, Shao H, Yang Z (2015) Karst bare slope soil erosion and soil quality: a simulation case study. Solid Earth 6:985–995
Descroix L, Viramontes D, Vauclin M, Barrios JLG, Esteves M (2001) Influence of soil surface features and vegetation on runoff and erosion in the Western Sierra Madre (Durango, Northwest Mexico). Catena 43:115–135
Ford DC, Williams PM (2007) In: Wiley J, Ltd S (eds) Karst hydrogeology and geomorphology, Chichester, pp 6–7
Gong TX, Zhu YJ, Shao MA (2018) Effect of embedded-rock fragments on slope soil erosion during rainfall events under simulated laboratory conditions. J Hydrol 563:811–817
Govers G, Oost KV, Poesen J (2006) Responses of a semi-arid landscape to human disturbance: a simulation study of the interaction between rock fragment cover, soil erosion and land use change. Geoderma 133:19–31
Jiang J (2013, 2013) The present situation and countermeasures for stony desertification in Jianshui County. For Constr (2):26–28 (In Chinese with English abstract)
Jiang ZC, Luo WQ, Deng Y, Cao JH, Qin XM, Li YQ, Yang QY (2014) The leakage of water and soil in the karst peak cluster depression and its prevention and treatment. Acta Geosci Sin 35:535–542
Jomaa S, Barry DA, Heng BCP, Brovelli A, Sander GC, Parlange JY (2012) Influence of rock fragment coverage on soil erosion and hydrological response: laboratory flume experiments and modeling. Water Resour Res 48:213–223
Kosmas CS, Danalatos NG, Moustakas N, Tsatiris B, Kallianou C, Yassoglou N (1993) The impacts of parent material and landscape position on drought and biomass production of wheat under semiarid conditions. Soil Technol 6:337–349
Li XY, Contreras S, Sole-Benet A (2007) Spatial distribution of rock fragments in dolines: a case study in a semiarid Mediterranean mountain-range (Sierra de Gador, SE Spain). Catena 70:366–374
Li Y, Liu ZQ, Lv XX, Cao Y, Dong XC (2016) Physicochemical properties of underground leakage water and soil in rock desertification area of Guizhou, China. J Soil Water Conserv 30:111–117
Mekonnen M, Keesstra SD, Baartman JEM, Stroosnijder L, Maroulis J (2017) Reducing sediment connectivity through man-made and natural sediment sinks in the Minizr catchment, northwest Ethiopia. Land Degrad Dev 28:708–717
Nyssen J, Poesen J, Moeyersons J, Lavrysen E, Haile M, Deckers J (2002) Spatial distribution of rock fragments in cultivated soils in northern Ethiopia as affected by lateral and vertical displacement processes. Geomorphology 43:1–16
Phillips JD, Luckow K, Marion DA, Adams KR (2005) Rock fragment distributions and regolith evolution in the Ouachita Mountains, Arkansas, USA. Earth Surf Process Landf 30:429–442
Poesen J (1987) Transport of rock fragments by rill flow – a field study. Catena 8:35–54
Poesen J, Lavee H (1994) Rock fragments in top soils: significance and processes. Catena 23:1–28
Poesen J, Wesemael BV, Govers G, Martinez-Fernandez J, Desmet P, Vandaele K, Quine T, Degraer G (1997) Patterns of rock fragment cover generated by tillage erosion. Geomorphology 18:183–197
Poesen JW, Wesemael BV, Bunte K, Benet AS (1998) Variation of rock cover and size along semiarid hillslopes: a case study from southeast Spain. Geomorphology 23:323–335
Rieke-Zapp D, Poesen J, Nearing MA (2010) Effects of rock fragments incorporated in the soil matrix on concentrated flow hydraulics and erosion. Earth Surf Process Landf 32:1063–1076
Shinohara Y, Misumi Y, Kubota T, Nanko K (2019) Characteristics of soil erosion in a moso-bamboo forest of western Japan: comparison with a broadleaved forest and a coniferous forest. Catena 172:451–460
Simanton JR, Toy TJ (1994) The relation between surface rock-fragment cover and semiarid hillslope profile morphology. Catena 23:213–225
Simanton JR, Renard KG, Christiansen CM, Lane LJ (1994) Spatial-distribution of surface rock fragments along catenas in semiarid Arizona and Nevada, USA. Catena 23:29–42
Singer A (1988) Properties and genesis of some soils of Guangxi province, China. Geoderma 43:117–130
State Forestry of China (2012) Rock desertification in karst area, China. http://www.forestry.gov.cn/uploadfile/main/2012-6/file/2012-6-15-147e8ffa780643d68d6126b67ae60d7b.pdf. Accessed 15 June 2012
Trudgill S (1985) Limestone geomorphology. Longman Group Ltd, London, pp 1–181
Wang SJ, Liu QM, Zhang DF (2004) Karst rocky desertification in southwestern China: geomorphology, landuse, impact and rehabilitation. Land Degrad Dev 15:115–121
Wang XY, Li ZX, Cai CF, Shi ZH, Xu QX, Fu ZY, Guo ZL (2012) Effects of rock fragment cover on hydrological response and soil loss from Regosols in a semi-humid environment in South-West China. Geomorphology 151–152:234–242
Wang XY, Wang TW, Cai CF, He BH (2015) Spatial distribution of rock fragments in purple soil in Three Gorges reservoir area. Acta Pedol Sin 52:293–302
Yan DX, Zhu DH, Weng JT, Zhu ZW, Han XR, Wang XY, Cai GH, Zhu YF, Cui GZ, Deng ZQ (1994) Karst in China. Geographical Publisher (In Chinese), Beijing, pp 129–134
Zhang YH, Zhang MX, Niu JZ, Li HL, Xiao R, Zheng HJ, Bech J (2016) Rock fragments and soil hydrological processes: significance and progress. Catena 147:153–166
Zhu YJ, Shao MA (2008) Spatial distribution of surface rock fragment on hill-slopes in a small catchment in wind-water erosion crisscross region of the Loess Plateau. Sci China 51:862–870
Funding
The research reported in this study was funded by the National Key Program of China (2016YFC0502504) and the National Natural Science Foundation of China (41671031).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Additional information
Responsible editor: Philippe Garrigues
Publisher’s note
Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Liu, J., Shen, Yx., Zhu, Xa. et al. Spatial distribution patterns of rock fragments and their underlying mechanism of migration on steep hillslopes in a karst region of Yunnan Province, China. Environ Sci Pollut Res 26, 24840–24849 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-019-05658-1
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-019-05658-1