Strengthening the effectiveness of nature reserves in representing ecosystem services: The Yangtze River Economic Belt in China

Nature reserves (NRs) are the main protected areas in China and effective measures for biodiversity conservation. Three key types of ecosystem services, including soil retention (potential soil retention-SR), carbon sequestration (net primary productivity-NPP), and biodiversity conservation (habitat quality-HQ), were applied to evaluate the effectiveness of national NRs in China’s Yangtze River Economic Belt. Ecosystem services were examined from two different scales (grid, individual NR), and different NRs types in 2000–2015, by using the RUSLE, CASA, and InVEST models. The results showed that the NRs had higher ES supply capacity than the non-NRs. SR and NPP showed significant increasing trends in four types of NRs. The HQ of forest ecosystem and wild animal reserves showed an increasing trend, while the HQ of inland wetlands and wild plants reserves showed a decreasing trend. Changes in NPP, SR, and HQ presented significant spatial heterogeneity for different NR types. Comprehensive effects of NRs, dynamic monitoring and evaluation of the conservation effectiveness of NRs, optimizing the institutional system of the NRs and perfecting the property of the NRs are suggested to be strengthened. These findings can provide decision support and methodological information for the effectiveness evaluation of NRs and land use policy in other regions of China and the world.