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Abstract In the process of flowing through the Hetao Basin， the Yellow River once formed four ancient lakes： Jilantai Lake， Ulanbuhe Lake， Bayannur Lake and Huhe-Baotou Lake. In the period of high lake level， the four lakes formed a unified “Ancient Hetao Lake”， after that the four lakes separated and developed their own river-lake relationship respectively. This paper fully studies the previous achievements and establishes an overall hypothesis explanation framework to reconstruct as far as possible the evolution process of the river-lake relationship in Inner Mongolia section， which is unified in historical and logical order， and provides reference for the governance of related ecosystems. The study shows the following findings： The construction of the main river channel was the process and result of the proactive lake filling， dike building， trough building and “getting rid of lake” by Yellow River； Alluvial fans were the main mode of lake filling for the Yellow River， and the bulges near the apex of alluvial fans were the main cause for lake entrance silting and moving and the final formation of the natural dike of the Yellow River； The two control points， Bayanmuren and Dengkou， play key roles in forming the main channel of the Yellow River on the Ordos side； During the period of high lake level， the Western Flow of the Yellow River from the lake mouth of Bayanmuren into the Jilantai-Ulanbuhe Lake， with the river water from the north to the lake together， contributed to the growth of the ancient Herimusini sand spit and its extension sand ridge， and once separated the two latter lakes during the period of low lake level. In view of the understanding of the historical past of Yellow River， we should， based on the concept of efficient and integrated use of limited water resources where possible， build a sustainable Yellow River ecosystem in Inner Mongolia by combining disaster mitigation with the moderate reconstruction of lakes and oases along the river.
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Received: 09 January 2024
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2024, Vol. 23 
