Riverine–lacustrine ecosystems in river–lake continua face increasing threats, yet conventional vulnerability maps often overlook local degradation drivers. This study presents an advanced satellite-based mapping framework using Deep Attention Networks (DANets) for accurate, interpretable vulnerability assessment. In the Ebinur Lake Basin, a representative dryland river system, we first built a satellite-derived evidence map of ecosystem stress aligned with the IPCC’s vulnerability definition. We then optimized DA…