Fractals in Spatial Patterns of Vegetation Formations

The spatial distribution patterns of species are always scale-dependent and spatially self-similar in ecological systems. In this work, vegetation distribution data collected from the vegetation map of the Xigazê region was analyzed using a box-counting method. The power law of the box-counting dimension (DB) across a range of scales (5-160 km) confirms the fractal patterns for most vegetation formations, while the fluctuations of the scale-specific DB among the different abundance groups indicate limitations of fractal coherence. The fractal method is shown to be a useful tool for measuring the distribution patterns of vegetation formations across scales, which provides important information for both species and habitat conservation, especially in landscape management.