Construction of an Ecological Security Pattern in Yangtze River Delta Based on Circuit Theory

Ecological corridors can improve the connectivity between different habitat regions, ultimately halting the loss of biodiversity and habitat fragmentation. Building ecological corridors is a crucial step in protecting biodiversity. Ecological corridors had previously been built primarily on nature reserves, ignoring ecosystem services. In this study, a novel approach to building ecological corridors is put forth that takes into account a variety of ecosystem services, morphological spatial pattern analysis (MSPA), and connectivity methodologies to identify significant ecological sources. Ecological corridors and significant strategic nodes are created based on the minimum cumulative resistance model (MCR) and circuit theory in order to construct the Yangtze River Delta's ecological security pattern. The research found that: (1) the identified ecological sources are 90,821.84 km(2), and the total length of ecological corridors is 4704.03 km. (2) In total, 141 ecological restoration areas are identified, with a total area of 2302.77 km(2); 151 ecological protection areas are identified, with a total area of 5303.43 km(2). This study can provide valuable insights into the establishment of ecological patterns and the construction of priority restoration and protection areas in the ecological restoration of the Yangtze River Delta.