Alternative standardization approaches to improving streamflow reconstructions with ring-width indices of riparian trees

Meko, David M.; Friedman, Jonathan M.; Touchan, Ramzi; Edmondson, J. R.; Griffin, Eleanor R.; Scott, Julian

doi:10.1177/0959683615580181

Cited by 30 publications

(34 citation statements)

References 36 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…Dendrochronology provides an opportunity to analyse long‐term environmental controls on tree growth because information is preserved in annual growth increments. Cores from riparian cottonwoods can be used to quantitatively connect river discharge to tree growth (Reily and Johnson, ; Stromberg and Patten, ; Meko et al ., ). We collected cores from 210 Fremont cottonwoods at three sites using a 5.15 × 500 mm Haglof increment borer.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effects of Moderate and Extreme Flow Regulation on Populus Growth along the Green and Yampa Rivers, Colorado and Utah

Schook

Carlson

Sholtes

et al. 2016

River Research & Apps

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

River regulation induces immediate and chronic changes to floodplain ecosystems. We analysed both short-term and prolonged effects of river regulation on the growth patterns of the keystone riparian tree species Fremont cottonwood (Populus deltoides ssp. wislizenii) at three upper Colorado River Basin rivers having different magnitudes of flow regulation. We compared cottonwood basal area increment on (i) the regulated Upper Green River below Flaming Gorge Dam; (ii) the adjacent free-flowing Yampa River; and (iii) the partially regulated Lower Green River below their confluence. Our goal was to identify the hydrologic and climatic variables most influential to tree growth under different flow regimes. A dendrochronological analysis of 182 trees revealed a long-term (37 years) trend of declining growth during the postdam period on the Upper Green, but trees on the partially regulated Lower Green maintained growth rates similar to those on the reference Yampa River. Mean annual, mean growing season, and peak annual discharges were the multicollinear flow variables most correlated to growth during both pre-dam and post-dam periods at all sites. Annual precipitation was also highly correlated with tree growth, but precipitation occurring during the growing season was poorly correlated with tree growth, even under full river regulation conditions. This indicates that cottonwoods rely primarily on groundwater recharged by river flows. Our results illustrate the complex and prolonged effects of flow regulation on floodplain forests, and suggest that flow regulation designed to simulate specific aspects of flow regimes, particularly peak flows, may promote the persistence of these ecosystems.

show abstract

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effects of Moderate and Extreme Flow Regulation on Populus Growth along the Green and Yampa Rivers, Colorado and Utah

Schook

Carlson

Sholtes

et al. 2016

River Research & Apps

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…This is in contrast to observations in other Great Plains basins to the south, where reductions in the runoff ratio can be attributed to increased pumping of groundwater from alluvial aquifers ( e.g ., Kustu et al ., ; Juracek, ) or to changes in irrigation, water storage practices, or vegetation cover (Szilagyi, ). As noted earlier, tree‐ring data (Meko et al ., ) indicate that there was an extended period during the early 1800s in which growth was less than that observed during the period of LMR flow record, which suggests that the observed climatic and streamflow conditions were within the range of climatic variability of the past 300 years. These results have strong implications for future water availability in the region given the forecast for continued rising temperatures (Shafer et al ., ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Monthly precipitation data from eight National Weather Service (NWS) Cooperative Observer Program (Coop) stations within the LMR Basin (Figure ; Table ) with long (>44 years), relatively complete records were obtained from the High Plains Regional Climate Center (http://www.hprcc.unl.edu/, accessed June 2015). Average precipitation and variability in precipitation were determined for the tree‐ring growth year ( P ann ; August 1 to July 31, designated by end year; Edmondson et al ., ) and growing season ( P gs ; April 1 to July 31; Meko et al ., ). We examined variability in precipitation among the stations and the interannual variability in basin‐wide average precipitation.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 98%

“…These values are more than twice the average annual precipitation (about 400 mm; Kunkel et al ., ). The region is susceptible to droughts that, depending on severity and duration, can have costly impacts on water supply and agricultural productivity (Karl and Quayle, ; Williams‐Sether et al ., ) as well as the health of riparian trees (Stromberg et al ., ; Rood et al ., ; Edmondson et al ., ; Meko et al ., ). The Little Missouri River is a largely unregulated river, with no large reservoirs, so that flow magnitudes and volumes generally reflect the spatial and temporal variability in weather across the basin.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 97%

“…monilifera ). Growth and ring width in riparian trees can be strongly influenced by streamflow, which augments the shallow groundwater and precipitation (Stromberg et al ., ; Meko et al ., ). A 368‐year tree‐ring chronology developed by Edmondson et al .…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 98%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Decreased Runoff Response to Precipitation, Little Missouri River Basin, Northern Great Plains,USA

Griffin

Friedman

2017

J American Water Resour Assoc

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

High variability in precipitation and streamflow in the semiarid northern Great Plains causes large uncertainty in water availability. This uncertainty is compounded by potential effects of future climate change. We examined historical variability in annual and growing season precipitation, temperature, and streamflow within the Little Missouri River Basin and identified differences in the runoff response to precipitation for the period 1976‐2012 compared to 1939‐1975 (n = 37 years in both cases). Computed mean values for the second half of the record showed little change (<5%) in annual or growing season precipitation, but average annual runoff at the basin outlet decreased by 22%, with 66% of the reduction in flow occurring during the growing season. Our results show a statistically significant (p < 0.10) 27% decrease in the annual runoff response to precipitation (runoff ratio). Surface‐water withdrawals for various uses appear to account for <12% of the reduction in average annual flow volume, and we found no published or reported evidence of substantial flow reduction caused by groundwater pumping in this basin. Results of our analysis suggest that increases in monthly average maximum and minimum temperatures, including >1°C increases in January through March, are the dominant driver of the observed decrease in runoff response to precipitation in the Little Missouri River Basin.

show abstract

Flow reconstructions in the Upper Missouri River Basin using riparian tree rings

2016

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

River flow reconstructions are typically developed using tree rings from montane conifers that cannot reflect flow regulation or hydrologic inputs from the lower portions of a watershed. Incorporating lowland riparian trees may improve the accuracy of flow reconstructions when these trees are physically linked to the alluvial water table. We used riparian plains cottonwoods (Populus deltoides ssp. monilifera) to reconstruct discharge for three neighboring rivers in the Upper Missouri River Basin: the Yellowstone (n = 389 tree cores), Powder (n = 408), and Little Missouri Rivers (n = 643). We used the Regional Curve Standardization approach to reconstruct log‐transformed discharge over the 4 months in early summer that most highly correlated to tree ring growth. The reconstructions explained at least 57% of the variance in historical discharge and extended back to 1742, 1729, and 1643. These are the first flow reconstructions for the Lower Yellowstone and Powder Rivers, and they are the furthest downstream among Rocky Mountain rivers in the Missouri River Basin. Although mostly free‐flowing, the Yellowstone and Powder Rivers experienced a shift from early‐summer to late‐summer flows within the last century. This shift is concurrent with increasing irrigation and reservoir storage, and it corresponds to decreased cottonwood growth. Low‐frequency flow patterns revealed wet conditions from 1870 to 1980, a period that includes the majority of the historical record. The 1816–1823 and 1861–1865 droughts were more severe than any recorded, revealing that drought risks are underestimated when using the instrumental record alone.

show abstract

Alternative standardization approaches to improving streamflow reconstructions with ring-width indices of riparian trees

Cited by 30 publications

References 36 publications

Effects of Moderate and Extreme Flow Regulation on Populus Growth along the Green and Yampa Rivers, Colorado and Utah

Effects of Moderate and Extreme Flow Regulation on Populus Growth along the Green and Yampa Rivers, Colorado and Utah

Decreased Runoff Response to Precipitation, Little Missouri River Basin, Northern Great Plains,USA

Flow reconstructions in the Upper Missouri River Basin using riparian tree rings

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About