A terrestrial surface is characterized by a set of elements such as landform, climate, water, and soil and vegetation. The interaction of such elements forms a series of systematic regions on a terrestrial surface with a geographical zonation distribution; this is known as a terrestrial pattern. Realization of the internal relationship between the terrestrial elements and knowledge of their interaction and pattern formation would be helpful to further understand the physical geographical processes and the state of sustainable resource use and environmental protection planning. Changes in any one of the abovementioned terrestrial elements would lead to variations in the whole pattern. Currently, climate is the most variable element that could cause a shift in a terrestrial pattern. However, such transformation in a terrestrial pattern would contain a lag period. Previous studies show that Chinas climate has significantly changed, leading the other elements, such as phenology and crop planting distribution, to change as well. Consequently, the possibility of a terrestrial pattern shift has increased. A change in one element within a pattern shift would be a complicated nonlinear dynamic process. Therefore, the amplitude and velocity of a terrestrial pattern shift are the most important elements. The number of continuous days, (taken as the period of plant growing season) and accumulated temperature 310°C are the main indicators used to describe the natural zone of a terrestrial pattern. Based on the homogenized mean daily temperature record from 545 meteorological stations in China from 1960 to 2011, the number of continuous days and accumulated temperature 310°C were calculated to analyze the change in the characteristics of Chinas natural zone patterns. Changes in each natural zone and the mean latitude were calculated to represent the amplitudes of the land surface region shifts. A new function was set to represent the amplitude and velocity of regional boundary transformation. Then, the amplitudes, trends, and velocities of Chinas land surface region patterns and the typical region boundaries were calculated. The years in which significant regional shifts occurred were also identified. The results show a change in temperature states from a relative cold period (1960-1986) to a relative warm period (1987-2011); this change caused significant northward shifts of several major natural zones in China. The temperature zones in China, especially the northern boundary of the subtropical and warm temperate zones, had shifted northward during 1987-2011. During 1960-2011, the eastern part of the northern subtropical zone had moved 1.386°N. The northern and the eastern parts of the north boundary of the warm temperate zone had moved 0.354°N with velocities of 0.533°/10 a and 0.136°/10 a, respectively. The clustering of mutation testing showed that the northern boundaries of the subtropical and warm temperate zones substantially shifted northward in 1996 and 1997. Regional shifts occurred approximately 10 years after entering the relative warm period. This study has revealed the impacts of climate change on a macroscopic regional system; these findings could provide a scientific basis for climate-change adaptation.