Ecosystem variation over five years (2010-2015) in priority areas of biodiversity conservation in Hubei Province

To reveal the dynamic changes in ecosystem patterns, we analyzed ecosystem composition structure and variation using distribution data collected in 2010 and 2015 for priority areas in Hubei Province. Results showed that:(1) there were seven types of ecosystems, including forest, shrub, grassland, wetland, cropland, urban land, and bare land, with the forest area being the largest, followed by shrub and farmland. Vegetation coverage was relatively high, and the overall ecological environment was relatively good; (2) All ecosystem types changed over the five years; forest, shrub, and bare land areas all decreased, whereas grassland, wetland, cropland, and urban areas all increased, with the urban area changing significantly; (3) Urbanization, water resource development, ecological protection and restoration, agricultural development, geological disasters, and climate change all significantly impacted the ecosystems, with urbanization found to be the major factor. To protect the sustainable development of the ecosystems within the priority areas, ecological protection red lines should be delineated and combined with various protected areas, land use should be reasonably planned in the course of urbanization, arable land should be protected, and the development of important wetlands should be prohibited or restricted.