Publication Date:
2018-11-06
Description:
To determine why certain desert plants form nebkhas whereas others do not, we investigated common sand-fixing plants of the Minqin desert region, with 108 plants and nebkha samples set up at the edge of the above region. Measurement and comparative analysis of markers such as silhouette layer width, area, and center height revealed the following trends: (i) The silhouettes of nebkha-forming plants are triangular or cylindrical, i.e., the width of these silhouettes decreases with increasing height, and the silhouette centers are positioned 30 cm above the ground. Thus, these plants are shrubs. Plants that do not accumulate sand to form nebkhas are rhombus-shaped, and their silhouette centers are located more than 30 cm above the ground. (ii) Drifting sand flux and sandstorm particles are mainly concentrated in the region between 0 and 30 cm above the ground, explaining why plants with lower silhouettes can easily accumulate sand to form nebkhas. (iii) After being buried in sand, ...
Print ISSN:
1755-1307
Electronic ISSN:
1755-1315
Topics:
Geography
,
Geosciences
,
Physics
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