Objective The objective of this study was to reveal the spatial-temporal evolution and driving factors of habitat quality in Altay area, and to provide scientific supports for ecological environment protection and sustainable development.

Method Using a year-by-year land-use dataset ranging from 1990 to 2021, ArcGIS and InVEST models were employed to evaluate the habitat quality, and explore the driving factors of habitat quality index.

Result (1) Bare land and grassland were dominant land-use types, mainly distributed in the central and southern areas. While forests were mainly distributed in the northern part of the study area. From 1990 to 2021, there was a significant change in land-use types, mainly occurred between bare land and grassland, both of them were transferred to cropland, forests and build-up areas. The area of grassland decreased significantly, while the areas of cropland, forest, and build-up areas increased significantly. (2) In terms of spatial pattern, the habitat quality in Altay area was high in the northwest and the north region, and low in the southeast and the south region. The areas with high habitat quality were mainly distributed in the forest and waters areas of the northwestern part, and the low value areas were mainly distributed in the bare land of the southern part. The average value of habitat quality index for the Altay area decreased from 0.513 to 0.508 in 1990 to 2021. (3) The degree of land use and potential evapotranspiration were the two main driving factors that had the highest impact on habitat quality in the study area, both of them showed significant negative correlations with habitat quality. Both of annual temperature and annual precipitation had weak correlations with habitat quality.

Conclusion The habitat quality of Altay area generally showed a slight decreasing trend and was significantly correlated with the degree of land use. In future, ecological governance on forest and grassland should be enhanced and the structure of land use should also be optimized. The results will be benefit to enhance the understanding of the long-term dynamic changes in habitat quality, and to provide decision-making support for ecological construction and industrial development evaluation in the Altay area and other arid areas in Northwest China.