Evaluate the resilience of ecological networks under node attack scenarios to reveal the cross-scale transmission characteristics

Abstract

Investigating the scale transmission mechanisms of ecological networks (ENs) resilience is critical for designing adaptive planning and policies to mitigate multi-scale anthropogenic pressures. Accordingly, an analysis framework applicable to multi-level scales was developed, taking the provincial, city cluster and city scales as a nested hierarchy, constructing structural ENs (based on Morphological Spatial Pattern Analysis) and functional ENs (based on the ecological importance and sensitivity evaluation), then evaluating their resilience and cross-scale transmission characteristics using a node attack model. Results showed structural and functional ENs were most stable at city scale, with stability weakening as scale increased. Complete removal of city scale patches caused a larger decline in provincial scale resilience (0.19 and 0.15 for structural and functional ENs) than in the city cluster scale (0.08 and 0.09 for structural and functional ENs). The provincial scale resilience only decreased 0.07 for structural ENs when city cluster scale patches were removed completely, lower than complete removal of city scale patches, but it showed extreme vulnerability at the initial stage. ENs resilience exhibited cascading fragility, removing finer scale patches can trigger asymmetric cross-scale transmission, and the re-stabilization could be achieved through sacrificial degradation of secondary nodes and reconfiguration of peripheral corridors. It emphasized the critical need for tiered conservation strategies and coordinated management across scales to enhance ENs stability. The proposed framework provides a transferable tool for multi-scale ENs optimization, supporting biodiversity conservation and sustainable development goals.