The Influence of Traditional Ethnic Villages on Forest Structure Based on PLS-SEM: A Case Study of Miao Inhabited Area
Round 1
Reviewer 1 Report
The paper presents a comprehensive study that aims to explore the impact of Miao ethnic villages on surrounding forests using a combination of spatial analysis techniques, structural equation modeling (SEM), and geographically weighted regression (GWR). The study is thorough and provides valuable insights into the complex relationships between human activities, landscape patterns, and forest structure. Overall, the paper is well-structured and presents a rigorous analysis. However, there are a few areas where clarification and further details would enhance the quality of the paper.
Specific Comments:
- The abstract provides a concise overview of the study's objectives and methods. However, it could benefit from a clearer statement of the main implications.
- The introduction provides a solid background for the study and highlights the importance of forest conservation in the face of human activities and landscape changes. It sets up the context well for the subsequent sections.
- it would be beneficial to provide some additional details about the spatial resolution of the data used and the processing steps undertaken to prepare the data for analysis.
- The methodology section is well-structured and presents a clear description of the techniques used, including Ripley's K function, PLS-SEM, and GWR. However, some additional clarifications and explanations would enhance the understanding of readers who are not familiar with these techniques. For example, explaining the rationale behind using different buffer zones and distances in the analysis could help readers understand the decisions made.
- the discussion could further explore potential reasons for the observed spatial distribution patterns and their alignment with cultural practices.
- The overall language and writing style of the paper are clear and coherent. However, there are a few sentences that could be revised for clarity. Additionally, some sentences are quite lengthy and could be broken down into smaller, more digestible segments.
-The figures and tables are well-designed and effectively support the text. Ensure that the captions provide sufficient context and explanation for readers to understand the content without referring back to the main text.
-The paper does a good job of presenting the methods and results, but it would be helpful to explicitly state the main hypothesis or research questions that the study aimed to address at the beginning of the paper.
- The overall language and writing style of the paper are clear and coherent. However, there are a few sentences that could be revised for clarity. Additionally, some sentences are quite lengthy and could be broken down into smaller, more digestible segments.
Author Response
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Reviewer 2 Report
The manuscript is well written. However, it needs to be improved before it can be published. I have the following suggestions to improve the manuscript.
Abstract:
Line-12: research framework for the , replace it with research framework to study
Line 16: Should it the distribution of Miao village distribution or distribution of households of that community?
Line 24-25: positive effect on forest distribution or on forest structure change.
Line 30 and 31: distribution of other forests or closed canopy forest?
Introduction:
Line 51-52: Not clear what it meant here.
Line 53-72: Mentioned what the scholars studied only, but what was their finding is not mentioned.
Line 87: The Miao people, is it ethnic community or indigenous community, simply writing Miao people dose not give concept of how they are different
Line 189-195: The objectives are not well supported by the problem statement, it needs to be improved.
Results
Line 356, Fig. and line 368 Figure, not uniform for same
Figure 2: Is it the distribution of households or villages?
Figure 3: Axis not mentioned/clear
Before Line 447, explain direct and indirect effects, and how they are categorised.
Discussion
Line 537 to 545: This should be part of the result, and without the information in result, how can you bring it in discussion
Conclusion
Contents are repetition of results, line 680-685. Need to rewrite it based on your discussion as well
Language editing is needed.
Author Response
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Reviewer 3 Report
I have had a great pleasure to read and review this article.
The topic is very interesting and rarely taken in such issue by other scientists, at the same time - very important in the situation of global environmental crisis of the Earth, including anthropogenic change of climate. The paper concerns the extremly important problem: protection of ecological structure of landscape in conditions of human activity / land use, especially long-term interaction between natural environment and human activities around Miao traditional ethnic villages and its impact on forests changes (changes of structure of forest phytocoenosis as well as spatial changes of forests occurrence in the landscape). The Authors have taken the successful attempt to recognise the essence and mechanisms of this reasearch issue and indicate / formulate the directions helpful to find the balance between man activity and forests quality and share / distribution in land use to keep better ecological equilibrium in spatial management of the whole landscape.
The methodic approach is also worth atention of scientists as a partly innovative and many-sided one. Sources and quality of used data are very reliable, well suited to the research problem. Results are presented correctly and clearly. Examples of specially interesting parts of the paper: Table 1, Figure 4, the whole subsections 2. Materials and methods, 3. Results, 4. Discussion and 5. Conclusions. I like and estimate highly the way of choice of parameters / variables which characterize not only condition of forests ecosytems, but also spatial structure of forested areas - distribution, of forest complexes - their role in ecological structure of the whole landscape, what is very crucial thing nowadays.
I like also that the Authors consider the cultural values of traditional ethnic populations and skillfully combined these cultural values with the need of environment protection, especially forests as the most efficient land ecosystems.
Detailed notes / suggestions:
1) I suggest to emphasise more the importance of occurrence of large-sized forest complexes in landscape structure. Occurrence of only small- and medium-sized forest complexes is not enough in landscape ecological structure; it gives the high biodiversity, but mainly for common species of flora and fauna, less rare and endangered species. Only large-sized forests have big forest interiors and support habitats for typical forest species, including rare and endangered with extinction ones.
2) I suggest more citations of references in the first part of the discussion (subsection 4.1.)
In general, it is a very good and valuable paper concerning important and urgent issue, worth publishing. I am sure, the interest of readers will be high.
The resuts are also useful for decision-makers and general management of districts
Author Response
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Reviewer 4 Report
This is an interesting paper. However, the paper has some issues which could be reshaped.
First, the introduction should better present what this study brings new în existing literature
Second, the literature review of the paper can be improved. For instance, the study of Cuni-Sanchez et al, 2019 in journal Ecosystem Services, even other examples of ethnic dynamics whose economic activities are connected to forests (see the case of Czechs and Slovaks as ethnic minorities in other countries - see Rotaru, M.A. et al, 2023 in journal Land, see the case of north-east India in a study of Reang D et al, 2022 in journal Agroforestry Systems). Also, it can be briefly mentioned the importance of internal/domestic migration of ethnicities towards more economically developed border areas (see O'Brien T. et al, 2022 in journal Identities).
Third, discussions are good, but some more connections between the outcomes of this study and the international literature on ethnicities and forestry could be made.
Finally, some policy recommendations would be good to be addressed after the discussion section.
Author Response
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Round 2
Reviewer 4 Report
Authors have much improved this paper, so I am happy to propose this paper to be accepted for publication.
Just for the production stage of the paper authors have to add both in the abstract and as a key-word the country where Miao villages are. Also, Miao villages should appear as key-word in the list of paper's key-words.
Author Response
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Author Response File: Author Response.docx
