Exploring the spatial configuration of tourism resources through ecosystem services and ethnic minority villages

The rampant and unregulated development of natural landscapes has depleted vital environmental resources, degraded ecosystems, and diminished the allure of ecotourism. Identifying natural spaces suitable for tourism development using a holistic approach that evaluates surrounding ecosystem structure and function is therefore imperative to safeguarding ecological integrity and fostering sustainable economic progress. Leveraging the InVEST model and Kernel Density Estimation (KDE), we assessed the spatial distribution of natural landscape resources and the density of ethnic minority villages to identify potential areas suitable for ecotourism development within the fragile Karst Region of Qiandongnan Miao and Dong Autonomous Prefecture (QMDA), southeastern Guizhou Province, China. Results showed that habitat quality in QMDA was relatively high, with high-quality habitat (Class V) covering 19,554.76 km2, accounting for 65% of the total study area. Optimal natural landscape resources gravitated predominantly towards Liping and Rongjiang, collectively occupying 16% and 12% of the total optimal natural landscape resources, respectively. A total of 3439.95 km2 of potential natural resource development space was identified, with a discernible spatial distribution where the western region of the study area surpassed the eastern counterpart, and the southern region exceeded the northern expanse. The potential development space of tourism resources spanned a cumulative area of 1245.84 km2, located predominately in Kaili, and Danzhai, accounting for 26% and 16% of the total potential development space of tourism resources, respectively. To ensure sustainable use of ecological and cultural assets in QMDA, it is recommended that zoning and regulatory measures that encompass both ecological and touristic domains be enacted. Our findings contribute to a scientific foundation for the pursuits of ecological preservation and the administration of tourism planning for QMDA.