Abstract: Based on the MODIS data of 2004 and 2008,variation of the landscape of land desertification in the lower reaches of Nenjiang River was explored with the aid of ArcGIS 9.0,ERDAS IMAGE 9.0,and FRAGSTATS.Results show that the desertified land in the studied area was dominated with light and moderate desertification.The edge density and patch density of various landscape elements decreased coincidentally,showing that patches were getting to be simpler in shape,the fragmentation degree of the landscape as a whole lowered and edge effect declined.Of all the landscape elements,except for water landscape,the shape index and the fractal dimension index both dropped,suggesting that the landscape as a whole developed towards simplicity and stability in shape.The interspersion juxtaposition index(IJI) and aggregation index(AI) of all the landscape elements showed a uniform rising trend,demonstrating that patches of the elements were turning to be larger,overall connectivity of the landscape higher,fragmentation degree lower,and interaction and spatial relationship of the landscapes have been strengthened.

Key words: landscape pattern, desertification land, MODIS, dynamic change