Research Journal of Environmental Sciences1819-34122151-8238Academic Journals Inc.10.3923/rjes.2014.90.100JaafariShirkou ShabaniAfshin Alizadeh DanehkarAfshin NazarisamaniAliakbar 2201482In the developing countries, habitat loss and fragmentation severely affect
protected area, due to the rapid expansion of anthropogenic activities that
has occurred in the last decades. Landscape metrics are commonly used to define
landscape patterns and to evaluate fragmentation processes. In this study, remote
sensing data and landscape metrics are used to investigate the changes in land
use and landscape pattern in Sorkhe Hesar national park, Iran over a study period
from 1986-2010. Landsat Thematic Mapper (TM) images are processed using ENVI
and landscape metrics are calculated at landscape and class levels using FRAGSTATS.
Landscape metrics analysis shows that land use patterns in Sorkhe Hesar have
been undergoing rapid changes over the past 25 years. Changes were mostly due
to the conversion of poor range and orchard to urban built up area which in
2010 had increased by more than 18.9 times in 1986. An evaluation of landscape
pattern based on landscape metrics analysis indicates rapid urbanization from
1986-2010. Due to rapid economic development and urbanization, the landscape
became more fragmented from 1986-2010. The study demonstrates that landscape
metrics can be a useful indicator in land use change analysis and are vital
for integrated landscape evaluation.]]>Aplin, P.,200529104113Batistella, M., S. Robeson and E.F. Moran,200369805812Bonta, M.,20053695112Leitao, B.A. and J. Ahern,2002596593Brook, B.W., N.S. Sodhi and P.K.L. Ng,2003424420426Bruner, A.G., R.E. Gullison, R.E. Rice and G.A.B. de Fonseca,2011291125128Bumabad,20012001Campbell, J.B.,1997Chape, S., S. Blyth, P. Fox and M. Spalding,20032003Congalton, R. and K. Green,1999Crews-Meyer, K.A.,20026810311040Cushman, S.A., K. McGarigal and M.C. Neel,20088691703Dorner, B., K. Lertzman and J. Fall,200217729743Foody, G.M.,20032440354046Forman, R.T.T.,1995Pages: 632Pages: 632Frohn, R.C. and Y. Hao,2006100237251Gergel, S.E. and M.G. Turner,2002Pages: 316Pages: 316Griffiths, G.H. and J. Lee,20002126852704Hall, F.G., D.E. Strebel, J.E. Nickeson and S.J. Goetz,1991351127Hansen, A.J., R. Rasker, B. Maxwell, J.J. Rotella, A. Wright and U. Langner,200252151168Hansen, A.J., R. De Fries and W. Turner,20042004pp: 277-299pp: 277-299Hanski, I., H. Koivulehto, A. Cameron and P. Rahagalala,20073344347Hargis, C.D., J.A. Bissonette and J.L. David,199813167186Herzog, F. and A. Lausch,2001723750Herzog, F., A. Lausch, E. Muller, H.H. Thulke, U. Steinhardt and S. Lehmann,20012791107Homewood, K., E.F. Lambin, E. Coast, A. Kariuki and I. Kikula et al.,2001981254412549Ivits, E., B. Koch, T. Blaschke, M. Jochum and P. Adler,20052629752993Jantz, C.A., S.J. Goetz and M.A. Shelley,200331251271Jensen, J.R.,19962nd Edn.,Pages: 316Pages: 316Jokisch, B.D. and B.M. Lair,200392235256Joshi, P.K., S. Singh, S. Agarwal and P.S. Roy,200180941947Laurance, W.F., L.V. Ferreira, M.J. Rankin-De-Merona and S.G. Laurance,19987920322040Laurance, W.F., S.G. Laurance, L.V. Ferreira, M.J. Rankin-De-Merona, C. Gascon and T.E. Lovejoy,199727811171118Lausch, A. and F. Herzog,20022315Williams-Linera, G., V.D. Gastelu and M.E.G. Zurita,19981210911102Lunetta, R.S. and L.G. Lyon,2004McGarigal, K., S.A. Cushman, M.C. Neel and E. Ene,2002Version 3.0,Munroe, D.K., H. Nagendra and J. Southworth,200783154167Munsi, M., S. Malaviya, G. Oinam and P.K. Joshi,201010145155Narumalani, S., D.R. Mishra and R.G. Rothwell,200491478489Parmenter, A.P., A. Hansen, R. Kennedy, W. Cohen and U. Langner et al.,200313687703Pimm, S.L.,19983932324Rodriguez, L.O. and K.R. Young,200029329337Sala, O.E., F.S. Chapin III, J.J. Armesto, E. Berlow and J. Bloomfield et al.,200028717701774Schott, J.R., C. Salvaggio and W.J. Volchok,198826116Song, C., C.E. Woodcock, K.C. Seto, M.P. Lenney and S.A. Macomber,200175230244Soverel, N.O., N.C. Coops, J.C. White and M.A. Wulder,2010164481499Turner, M.G., R.H. Gardner and R.V. O'Neill,2001Pages: 401Pages: 401Veldcamp, A. and E.F. Lambin,20018516Wang, Y. and D.K. Moskovits,200115835843Welch, R., M. Madden and T. Jordan,2002575368Woodroffe, R. and J.R. Ginsberg,199828021262128Xu, J., J. Fox, D. Melick, Y. Fujita and A. Jintrawet et al.,200626278284Yu, X. and C. Ng,20062710751092Zimmerer, K.S., R.E. Galt and M.V. Buck,200433520529McGarigal, K. and B.J. Marks,19951995