Can ecosystem services supply match local residents' perception: Linking macro-ESs and micro-individual perceptions in the Yellow River Basin

Residents' satisfaction perceptions of ecosystem services (ESs) are essential for the ecological protection and high-quality development of the Yellow River Basin (YRB). Existing studies lacks large-scale survey of local residents' satisfaction perception at urban scale within river basins, and has not effectively explored the matching relationship between the ESs supply and the perceptions of local residents. To address this gap, this study develops a database on nine ESs supply and individual perceptions of the YRB, constructs a comprehensive framework to quantify the matching of ESs supply and local residents' satisfaction perceptions, and proposes targeted strategy. The results reveal that: (1) Provisioning services are higher in cities along the river, while regulating services are higher in the south and west, both showing spatial clustering (p < 0.05). Cultural services are unevenly distributed, with higher quality of life and leisure tourism in the east and south. Provisioning and regulating services exhibit a spatial clustering (p < 0.05). (2) Residents' perceptions of provisioning services are the highest [3.86, 4.28], followed by cultural services [3.85, 3.98], and regulating services are lowest [3.53, 3.69]. Only provisioning services show significant spatial correlation (p < 0.05). (3) There are trade-offs and synergies in the ESs supply, but no significant correlation between the supply and perceptions. (4) A significant mismatch between ESs supply and local residents' perceptions in 15-24 cities, with 33.33%-71.79% of cities showing underestimation or overestimation of ESs supply. These findings provide feasible references for formulating and implementing tailored strategies for coordinated human and nature development.