A uniform versus an aggregated water balance of a semi-arid watershed

Flerchinger, G. N.; Cooley, Keith R.; Hanson, Clayton L.; Seyfried, M. S.

doi:10.1002/(sici)1099-1085(199802)12:2<331::aid-hyp580>3.0.co;2-e

Cited by 20 publications

(1 citation statement)

References 20 publications

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“…The snow is redistributed by wind, resulting in snow accumulations of 3-4 m in drifts and <15 cm in scour zones. Deposition patterns are persistent and result in distinctive snowsoil-vegetation complexes (Flerchinger et al, 1998;Prasad et al, 2001;Chauvin et al, 2011). The low sagebrush complex (Low Sage) is found on shallow (<50 cm deep) soils on mostly westfacing slopes and ridges.…”

Section: Settingmentioning

confidence: 99%

Inference of Soil Hydrologic Parameters from Electronic Soil Moisture Records

et al. 2017

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Key Points• Soil hydrologic parameters including field saturation, field capacity, initiation of plant water stress and plant extraction limits can be reliably determined from electronic soil moisture sensor records.• Soil profile wetting and drying occurs along a regular continuum of soil moisture following the advance of the wetting from to the effective base of the soil profile.• Frozen soil conditions and interactions between energy and water limited water balances complicate interpretations of fluxes in the soil-plant-atmosphere continuum.Soil moisture is an important control on hydrologic function, as it governs vertical fluxes from and to the atmosphere, groundwater recharge, and lateral fluxes through the soil. Historically, the traditional model parameters of saturation, field capacity, and permanent wilting point have been determined by laboratory methods. This approach is challenged by issues of scale, boundary conditions, and soil disturbance. We develop and compare four methods to determine values of field saturation, field capacity, plant extraction limit (PEL), and initiation of plant water stress from long term in-situ monitoring records of TDR-measured volumetric water content ( ). The monitoring sites represent a range of soil textures, soil depths, effective precipitation and plant cover types in a semi-arid climate. The records exhibit attractors (high frequency values) that correspond to field capacity and the PEL at both annual and longer time scales, but the field saturation values vary by year depending on seasonal wetness in the semi-arid setting. The analysis for five sites in two watersheds is supported by comparison to values determined by a common pedotransfer function and measured soil characteristic curves. Frozen soil is identified as a complicating factor for the analysis and users are cautioned to filter data by temperature, especially for near surface soils.

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Section: Settingmentioning

confidence: 99%

Inference of Soil Hydrologic Parameters from Electronic Soil Moisture Records

et al. 2017

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Hydrologic response and recovery to prescribed fire and vegetation removal in a small rangeland catchment

2016

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Prescribed fire can be used to return wild lands to their natural fire cycle, control invasive weeds, and reduce fuel loads, but there are gaps in the understanding of post-disturbance responses of vegetation and hydrology. The impact of a prescribed fire and subsequent aspen cutting on evapotranspiration (ET) and streamflow was assessed for the Upper Sheep Creek catchment, a 26-ha headwater catchment dominated by low sagebrush, mountain big sagebrush, and aspen within the Reynolds Creek Experimental Watershed. The 2007 prescribed fire consumed 100% of the mountain big sagebrush and approximately 21% of the low sagebrush. The aspen, which were mostly untouched by the fire, were cut in the fall of 2008. Post-disturbance ET and vegetation recovery were related to the loss of rooting depth. ET recovered within 2 years on the low sagebrush area with limited rooting depth, while that on the deeper-rooted mountain big sagebrush area took 4 years to recover. ET from the aspen trees, which can sprout from existing roots, recovered within 2 years. The influence of vegetation disturbance on streamflow was assessed using both empirical time trend analysis and process-based modelling. Although both approaches suggested approximately a 20% increase in streamflow during the 6 years post-disturbance, results from the empirical time trend analysis were marginally significant (p = 0·055), while those from the process-based modelling were not statistically significant. Marginal streamflow response can be attributed to rapid post-disturbance recovery of the aspen where most of the streamflow originates. Published 2016. This article is a U.S. Government work and is in the public domain in the USA

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Ecohydrologic response and recovery of a semi-arid shrubland over a five year period following burning

Williams

Pierson

Kormos

et al. 2016

CATENA

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Increasing trends in wildfire activity on semi-arid rangelands necessitate advancement in understanding of fire impacts on vegetation, soils, and runoff and erosion processes. This study used artificially applied rainfall and concentrated overland flow experiments to evaluate the ecohydrologic response and recovery of a semi-arid shrubland in the Great Basin Region, USA, © 2016. This manuscript version is made available under the Elsevier user license http://www.elsevier.com/open-access/userlicense/1.0/ 2 following fire. Rainfall experiments were conducted at the 0.5 m 2 plot scale to assess fire impacts on rainsplash and sheetflow processes. Concentrated flow experiments were applied on 9 m 2 plots to evaluate fire impacts on concentrated overland flow processes. Vegetation, soil, hydrologic, and erosion variables were assessed at each scale pre-fire and 1, 2, and 5 yr post-fire.Infiltration and runoff on rainfall simulation plots was affected more by measured background soil water repellency than fire effects on vegetation and soils. Runoff from rainfall on shrubdominated plots was unchanged 1 yr post-fire, but runoff from interspace plots between shrubs declined 1 yr post-fire. Runoff increased on shrub and interspace rainfall plots 2 yr post-fire and then declined in the 5 yr post-fire. Bare ground generally declined on rainfall plots across study years, implicating the temporal variability in soil water repellency as the causal factor for infiltration and runoff trends. Erosion on rainfall plots increased by factors of 8 to more than 10 following fire removal of vegetation and ground cover and declined with vegetation recovery through five growing seasons. Concentrated overland flow plots generated slightly more total runoff and 26-fold more total sediment 1 yr following burning relative to pre-fire measures.Erosion from concentrated overland flow remained greater on burned than unburned plots after five growing seasons even though ground cover returned to approximately 85%. The relative recovery of vegetation and total ground cover were typical for the shrubland community assessed, but elevated erosion with 85% ground cover 5 yr post-fire was unexpected. The persistent high sediment delivery from concentrated plots is attributed to the fine textured soils and thin litter accumulation. The importance of considering erodibility in context with sediment supply and vegetative recovery is discussed. The results demonstrate the complexity of post-fire ecohydrologic interactions, advance process understanding of post-fire ecohydrologic responses 3 for semi-arid rangelands, and underscore the need for additional studies on post-fire recovery over time.

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A uniform versus an aggregated water balance of a semi-arid watershed

Cited by 20 publications

References 20 publications

Inference of Soil Hydrologic Parameters from Electronic Soil Moisture Records

Inference of Soil Hydrologic Parameters from Electronic Soil Moisture Records

Hydrologic response and recovery to prescribed fire and vegetation removal in a small rangeland catchment

Ecohydrologic response and recovery of a semi-arid shrubland over a five year period following burning

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