%0 Journal Article %A LANG Lili %A WANG Xunming %A Hasi %A HUA Ting %T Coppice Dune Formation and Its Significance to Environmental Change Reconstructions in Arid and Semiarid Areas %D 2012 %R 10.11821/xb201211009 %J Acta Geographica Sinica %P 1526-1536 %V 67 %N 11 %X Environments in arid and semiarid areas are extremely sensitive to climate change. High wind activity in these regions has resulted in an extensively developed arid geomorphology, but past environmental changes are poorly understood because of the absence of relatively high-resolution proxies. The accumulation characteristics of nebkhas, which have developed extensively in these regions, can be used to reconstruct environmental changes. Here we summarized recent advances in research on the formation, development, and sediment characteristics of nebkhas and their significances to environmental changes in arid and semiarid areas. Based on the previous studies, we suggested that research on nebkha formation can provide distinct clues about environmental changes in arid and semiarid areas; however, further studies are needed. %U https://www.geog.com.cn/EN/10.11821/xb201211009