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Vegetation carbon use efficiency response to drought in the Manas River Basin of Xinjiang

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Abstract

Carbon Use Efficiency (CUE), quantified as the ratio of net primary production to gross primary production (NPP/GPP), serves as a crucial indicator of ecosystem carbon sequestration capacity. However, understanding of its spatiotemporal dynamics and drought response mechanisms in arid inland basins remains limited. This study investigates the CUE characteristics in the Manas River Basin, a representative arid endorheic basin in Xinjiang, China, using MODIS satellite data (2001-2020). Results demonstrate that the multi-year mean CUE of the basin was 0.50 (±0.12), with coniferous forests exhibiting the highest values and croplands the lowest. Seasonal analysis revealed CUE in spring and autumn significantly exceeded that in winter (p<0.01). Spatially, 57.99% of the basin displayed low CUE fluctuation, primarily distributed in grassland and woodland areas. Future trend projections indicate divergent persistence patterns between plain and desert grasslands. Drought response analysis identified a dominant 3-month lag effect, with forests showing greater drought resistance and longer response lags compared to croplands (1.2 months longer, p=0.03). The ecosystem maintains high resilience, regulated by the interactive effects of vegetation type, irrigation practices, and climate gradients. These findings establish a mechanistic framework for understanding carbon cycling processes in arid lands under climate stress, providing scientific basis for global dryland ecosystem management.

Data availability

Remote sensing datasets generated and/or analysed during this study are available at https://www.resdc.cn, https://ladsweb.modaps.eosdis.nasa.gov and https://earthengine.google.com/ in the repository. The Xinjiang forest survey data underpinning this study’s findings are obtainable from the Forestry Department. However, restrictions apply to the availability of these data, which were utilised under licence for the present study and are therefore not publicly accessible. They may be obtained from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.

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Funding

This work was supported by the Natural Science Foundation of Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region (2023D01A49); the National Natural Science Foundation of China (42261013).

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Author notes

  1. Jingjing Kong and Mei Zan have contributed equally to this work.

Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Geographic Science and Tourism, Xinjiang Normal University, Urumqi, China

    Jingjing Kong, Mei Zan, Zhizhong Chen, Shunfa Yang, Jia Zhou & Lili Zhai

  2. Xinjiang Laboratory of Lake Environment and Resources in the Arid Zone, Urumqi, China

    Mei Zan

Authors

  1. Jingjing Kong
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  2. Mei Zan
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  3. Zhizhong Chen
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  4. Shunfa Yang
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  5. Jia Zhou
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  6. Lili Zhai
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Contributions

Conceptualisation, J. K. and M. Z.; methodology,J. K. and S. Y.; software, J. K. and J. Z.; validation, J. K. and Z. C.; formal analysis, M. Z. and L. Z.; investigation, M. Z. and S. Y.; resources, Z. C. and M Z.; data curation, M Z. and J K.; writing—original draft preparation, C. Z. and M. Z.; writing—review and editing, M. Z. and C. Z.; visualisation, J. K., and Z. C.; supervision, M. Z.; project administration, M. Z. and J. Z.; funding acquisition, M. Z. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.

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Correspondence to
Mei Zan.

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Kong, J., Zan, M., Chen, Z. et al. Vegetation carbon use efficiency response to drought in the Manas River Basin of Xinjiang.
Sci Rep (2025). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-29708-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-29708-6

Keywords

  • Vegetation carbon use efficiency
  • Stability
  • Spatial and temporal trends
  • Lag effect
  • Resilience

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