Abstract
Desert-oasis ecotones are boundary areas between oases and desert ecosystems. Large efforts to control sediment and stabilize these boundaries depend on understanding sedimentary processes, especially aeolian transport and deposition. Previous studies on aeolian sediment deposition have focused primarily on a single land surface type or a single engineering approach. Few studies have considered deposition in a multi-layer oasis protective system. A complete oasis protective system consists of an outer bare sand area, a sand barrier zone, a shrub and herbaceous plant zone, and a farmland shelter zone. This study used sedimentary analysis to quantify grain-size characteristics in samples from the four land surfaces under different types of weather conditions in the Gelintan oasis of the Tengger Desert, the fourth largest desert in China. The results showed that aeolian sediment deposition decreased from the outer bare sand area through the oasis protective system and into the interior. The four land surface types showed significant differences in deposition volume (P < 0.05). Deposited sediment showed gradual decrease in dominant grain-size from sand to silt, but sediment deposited during dust weather contained a larger coarse-grained fraction. From the outer desert to the inner oasis, transport mechanisms shifted from saltation (sand) to suspension (silt and smaller) in non-dust weather. During dust weather, deposition primarily occurs from near-surface aeolian sand transport with saltation. Sediment sorting decreased from exterior to interior zones of the protective system while skewness and kurtosis showed no significant change (P < 0.05). These results can help inform strategies for stabilizing and protecting desert-oasis ecotones in this region and other localities.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
Reference
Batjargal Z, Dulam J, Chung YS (2006) Dust Storms are an Indication of an Unhealthy Environment in East Asia. Environmental Monitoring and Assessment 114(1–3): 447–460. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-006-5032-3
Bo TL, Ma P, Zheng XJ (2015) Numerical study on the effect of semi-buried straw checkerboard sand barriers belt on the wind speed. Aeolian Research 16: 101–107. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aeolia.2014.10.002
Burri K, Gromke C, Lehning M, et al. (2011) Aeolian sediment transport over vegetation canopies: A wind tunnel study with live plants. Aeolian Research 3(2): 205–213. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aeolia.2011.01.003
Dong ZB, Man DQ, Luo WY, et al. (2010) Horizontal aeolian sediment flux in the Minqin area, a major source of Chinese dust storms. Geomorphology 116(1–2): 58–66. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.geomorph.2009.10.008
Folk RL, Ward WC (1957) Brazos River bar: a study in the significance of grain size parameters. Journal of Sedimentary Petrology 27: 3–26.
Jiang Q, Yang X (2019) Sedimentological and geochemical composition of aeolian sediments in the Taklamakan Desert: Implications for provenance and sediment supply mechanisms. Journal of Geophysical Research: Earth Surface 124(5): 1217–1237. https://doi.org/10.1029/2018jf004990
Jie X (1999) Dust emission factors for environment of northern China. Atmospheric Environment, 33: 1767–1776. https://doi.org/10.1016/s1352-2310(98)00339-2
Krumbein WC (1938) Size frequency distribution of sediments and the normal phi curve. Journal of Sedimentary Petrology 8: 84–90.
Li XR, Xiao HL, He MZ, et al. (2006) Sand barriers of straw checkerboards for habitat restoration in extremely arid desert regions. Ecological Engineering 28(2): 149–157. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecoleng.2006.05.020
Li YL, Tuo WQ, Cui JY (2006) Comparison of particle size between aeolian dusts collected under dust event and nondust event. Journal of Desert Research 26(4): 644–647. (In Chinese) https://doi.org/10.3321/j.issn:1000-694X.2006.04.026
Lin YC, Xu LS (2017) Spatial change of the grainsize of aeolian sediments in Qira oasis-desert ecotone, Northwest China. Chinese Journal of Applied Ecology 28(4): 1337–1343. (In Chinese) https://doi.org/10.13287/j.1001-9332.201704.032
Liu X, Xie Y, Zhou D, et al. (2020) Soil grain-size Characteristics of Nitraria tangutorum Nebkhas with different degrees of vegetation coverage in a desert-oasis ecotone. Polish Journal of Environmental Studies 29(5): 3703–3714. https://doi.org/10.15244/pjoes/115866
Lyu Y, Qu ZQ, Liu LY, et al. (2017) Characterization of dustfall in rural and urban sites during three dust storms in northern China, 2010. Aeolian Research 28: 29–37. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aeolia.2017.06.004
Middleton NJ (2017) Desert dust hazards: a global review. Aeolian Research 24: 53–63. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aeolia.2016.12.001
Pi HW, Sharratt B, Gary F, et al. (2016) Validation of sweep for creep, saltation, and suspension in a desert-oasis ecotone. Aeolian Research 20: 157–168. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aeolia.2016.01.006
Pi HW, Sharratt B, Lei JQ (2017) Windblown sediment transport and loss in a desert-oasis ecotone in the tarim basin. Scientific Reports 7(1): 7723. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-017-04971-4
Shamaila ZK, Wolfram S, Yang P, et al. (2015) Effect of dust deposition on stomatal conductance and leaf temperature of cotton in Northwest China. Water 7(1): 116–131. https://doi.org/10.3390/w7010116
Shen Y, Zhang C, Wang R, et al. (2020) Spatial heterogeneity of surface sediment grain size and aeolian activity in the Gobi desert region of northwest China. CATENA 188. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.catena.2020.104469
Shi YX, Dai XR, Song ZG, et al. (2006) Particle size distribution and mineral components of atmospheric particles collected in spring of Shanghai. Journal of Desert Research 26(05): 780–785. (In Chinese) https://doi.org/10.3321/j.issn:1000-694X.2006.05.020
Wan D, Mu G, Jin Z, et al. (2013) The effects of oasis on aeolian deposition under different weather conditions: a case study at the southern margin of the Taklimakan desert. Environmental Earth Sciences 68(1): 103–114. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12665-012-1719-7
Wan DJ, Mu GJ, Lei JQ (2009) Study on the changing characteristics of falling dust of a dust storm based on oasis scale. Journal of Soil and Water Conservation 23(1): 26–30. (In Chinese) https://doi.org/10.3321/j.issn:1009-2242.2009.01.006
Wang GH, Munson SM, Yu KL, et al. (2020) Ecological effects of establishing a 40-year oasis protective system in a northwestern China desert. CATENA 187: 104374. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.catena.2019.104374
Wang H, Jia X (2013) Field Observations of Windblown Sand and Dust in the Takimakan Desert, NW China, and Insights into Modern Dust Sources. Land Degradation and Development 24: 323–333. https://doi.org/10.1002/ldr.1129
Wang X, Hua T, Zhu B, et al. (2018) Geochemical characteristics of the fine-grained component of surficial deposits from dust source areas in northwestern china. Aeolian Research 34: 18–26. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aeolia.2018.07.004
Xie YH, Dang XH, Meng ZJ, et al. (2019) Wind and sand control by an oasis protective system: a case from the southeastern edge of the Tengger Desert, China. Journal of Mountain Science 16(11): 2548–2561. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11629-019-5486-8
Xu LS, Mu GJ, He JX, et al. (2016b) Variability of dust mass concentrations and deposition rates under different weather conditions in Cele oasis, southern Tarim basin. Environmental earth sciences. 75(8): 639–640. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12665-016-5430-y
Xu LS, Mu GJ, Ren X, et al. (2016a) Oasis microclimate effect on the dust deposition in Cele Oasis at southern Tarim Basin, China. Arabian Journal of Geosciences 9(4): 294. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12517-016-2312-2
Xue J, Gui DW, Lei JQ, et al. (2019) Oasis microclimate effects under different weather events in arid or hyper arid regions: a case analysis in southern taklimakan desert and implication for maintaining oasis sustainability. Theoretical & Applied Climatology 137: 89–101. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00704-018-2567-5
Zhan KJ, Liu SZ, Yang ZH, et al. (2017) Suspended dust particle characteristics during an sandstorm on 29 february 2008 in minqin area, China. Aeolian Research 25: 79–86. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aeolia.2017.04.002
Zhang J, Jia G, Liu Z, et al. (2019) Populus simonii Carr. Reduces Wind Erosion and Improves Soil Properties in Northern China. Forests 10(4): 315. https://doi.org/10.3390/f10040315
Zhang J, Zhang C, Zhou N, et al. (2011) Spatial pattern of grain-size distribution in surface sediments as a result of variations in the aeolian environment in China’s Shapotou railway protective system. Aeolian Research 3(3): 295–302. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aeolia.2011.07.005
Zhang JQ, Zhang CL, Wu XX, et al. (2014) Aeolian deposition in the protective system of shaopotou section of the baotoulanzhou railway. Journal of Desert Research 34(01): 16–22. (In Chinese)
Zhao S, Yu Y, Xia D, et al. (2015) Urban particle size distributions during two contrasting dust events originating from Taklimakan and Gobi Deserts. Environmental Pollution 207: 107–122. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2015.08.052
Zhao WZ, Hu GL, Zhang ZH, et al. (2008) Shielding effect of oasis-protective systems composed of various forms of wind break on sand fixation in an arid region: a case study in the Hexi corridor, northwest china. Ecological Engineering 33(2): 119–125. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecoleng.2008.02.010
Zou XY, Li JF, Liu B, et al. (2016) The protective effects of Nebkhas on an oasis. Aeolian Research 20: 71–79. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aeolia.2015.11.004
Acknowledgments
This study was sponsored as a sub-project of the National Key Research and Development Program of China-Desertification Land Management and Sand Industry Technology Research and Development and Demonstration in Inner Mongolia Desertification Area, named Key Techniques and Demonstration of Sand Damage Control in Oasis and Saline-alkali Lake (2016YFC0501003); and a sub-project of the National Key Research and Development Program of Study on Restoration and Protection of Typical Fragile Ecology, named Study and Demonstration of Sand-fixing and Wind-breaking Techniques of Cyperus Esculentus L. in North Wind-blown Sand Region (2019YFC0507600).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Ding, J., Xie, Yh., Li, Xj. et al. Effects of an oasis protective system on aeolian sediment deposition: a case study from Gelintan oasis, southeastern edge of the Tengger Desert, China. J. Mt. Sci. 17, 2023–2034 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11629-019-5952-3
Received:
Revised:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11629-019-5952-3