High-resolution livestock distribution data on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau in 2020

Abstract

We provide the spatial distribution of cattle, sheep, and livestock grazing on grasslands at a spatial resolution of 15 arc-second (approximately 500 m at the equator) on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau (QTP) by using the dasymetric mapping approach. Spatial disaggregation weights were derived by using the prediction from a random forest model that linked county-level census livestock numbers to topography, climate, vegetation, and socioeconomic predictors. Both internal and external cross-validation showed model results could well capture the spatial variation of livestock numbers on the QTP. This study is supported by the Second Tibetan Plateau Scientific Expedition and Research Program (STEP, grant no. 2019QZKK0906).