Figure 1

The regression analysis between MODIS NDVI and GIMMS NDVI"

Table 1

Error analysis for the interpolated meteorological data, using year 2001 as an example"

Figure 2

Location of the study area and its grassland type distribution"

Figure 3

Correlation analysis of the estimated grass coverage and its field observed values"

Figure 4

Spatial distribution of the mean grass coverage from 1982 to 2010 in China"

Table 2

Results of implementation of the grass coverage change significant test for different grassland types"

Figure 5

Dynamics of the China’s grassland coverage from 1982 to 2010. Pattern of the grass coverage change (a), spatial distribution of significant test in China (b), the grade percentage of significant change of different types of grass coverage (c), and the nationwide inter-annual change of grass coverage (d)"

Figure 6

Changing trends of annual mean temperature and total precipitation in China from 1982 to 2010"

Figure 7

Correlations of grass coverage in China with temperature (a), and precipitation (b) from 1982 to 2010"

Figure 8

Distribution of correlation coefficient of temperature, precipitation and grassland coverage of different grassland types (a. denotes alpine and sub-alpine meadow; b. denotes slope grassland; c. denotes plain grassland; d. denotes desert grassland; e. denotes meadow; f. denotes alpine and sub-alpine grassland)"

Figure 9

Correlation coefficients between current month’s grass coverage and the current month’s temperature (a), the former one month’s temperature (b), the former two months’ temperature (c), and the former three months’ temperature (d)"

Figure 10

Correlation coefficients between current month’s grass coverage and the current month’s precipitation (a), the former one month’s precipitation (b), the former two months’ precipitation (c), and the former three months’ precipitation (d)"

Figure 11

Correlation coefficients between current months’ grass coverage for different grassland types and the current month’s, former one month’s, former two months’ and former three months’ temperature (a) and precipitation (b)"

Table 3

Correlation coefficients between current month’s grass coverage for different grassland types and the current month’s, former one month’s, former two months’ and former three months’ temperature"

Table 4

Correlation coefficients between current month’s grass coverage for different grassland types and the current month’s, former one month’s, former two months’ and former three months’ precipitation"