[Effects of urban expansion on habitat quality in densely populated areas on the Loess Pla-teau: A case study of Lanzhou, Xi'an-Xianyang and Taiyuan, China].

The rapid urbanization has greatly changed the spatial pattern and function of regional habitats, profoundly affected the material flow and energy flow between habitats, and also posed a serious threat to habitats and biodiversity. Here, we used InVEST model, landscape index and multiple linear regression to systematically analyze the spatial and temporal variation and influencing factors for the impacts of urbanization on habitat quality in the Loess Plateau and the densely populated areas from 1990 to 2018. The results showed that the urban expansion of Loess Plateau significantly affected habitat quality.