Infiltration Rates as Affected by Desert Vegetation

Lyford, Forest P.; Qashu, Hasan K.

doi:10.1029/wr005i006p01373

Cited by 114 publications

(53 citation statements)

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“…During the past quarter century, considerable research has been focused on understanding the ecohydrological implications of this conversion (Huxman et al 2005;Wilcox et al 2006). It has generally been found (though not always-see Moran et al (2010)) that infiltration rates are higher beneath shrub canopies than in intercanopy areas (Lyford and Qashu 1969;Seyfried 1991;Bergkamp 1998b;Schlesinger et al 1999;Wilcox 2002;D'Odorico et al 2007;Wilcox et al 2008;Pierson et al 2010;Daryanto et al 2013;Eldridge et al 2013), primarily owing to the accumulation of organic matter under shrubs, root activity (Joffre and Rambal 1993;Martinez-Meza and Whitford 1996;Jackson et al 2000), and soil disturbance by fauna (see "Influence of Fauna" section). In some situations the chemical composition of the litter may cause water repellency (hydrophobicity), which reduces the infiltration capacity of soils beneath the canopy, at least in the short term (Doerr et al 2000).…”

Section: Infiltration: Water Regulation At the Soil Surfacementioning

confidence: 99%

Ecohydrology: Processes and Implications for Rangelands

Wilcox

Maitre²,

Jobbágy

et al. 2017

Rangeland Systems

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This chapter is organized around the concept of ecohydrological processes that are explicitly tied to ecosystem services. Ecosystem services are benefits that people receive from ecosystems. We focus on (1) the regulating services of water distribution, water purification, and climate regulation; (2) the supporting services of water and nutrient cycling and soil protection and restoration; and (3) the provisioning services of water supply and biomass production. Regulating services are determined at the first critical juncture of the water cycle-on the soil surface, where water either infiltrates or becomes overland flow. Soil infiltrability is influenced by vegetation, grazing intensity, brush management, fire patterns, condition of biological soil crusts, and activity by fauna. At larger scales, water-regulating services are influenced by other factors, such as the nature and structure of riparian zones and the presence of shallow groundwater aquifers. Provisioning services are those goods or products that are directly produced from ecosystems, such as water, food, and fiber. Work over the last several decades has largely overturned the notion

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Section: Infiltration: Water Regulation At the Soil Surfacementioning

confidence: 99%

Ecohydrology: Processes and Implications for Rangelands

Wilcox

Maitre²,

Jobbágy

et al. 2017

Rangeland Systems

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“…Locations with low infiltration rate and low water storage capacity are potential sources for runoff, whereas locations with higher infiltration rates and a larger water storage capacity are potential sinks for water (Lyford and Qashu, 1969;Schlesinger and Pilmanis, 1998;Janeau et al, 1999). In arid areas with a homogeneous soil cover local redistribution of water occurs dominantly by shrub-crust interactions.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Modelling dynamic water redistribution patterns in arid catchments in the Negev Desert of Israel

Buis

Veldkamp

2007

Earth Surf Processes Landf

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In arid climate regions, redistribution of runoff water is highly relevant for vegetation development. The process of water redistribution at catchment scale is studied with the landscape process model LAPSUS, mainly used for erosion and sedimentation modelling. LAPSUS, formerly applied in Mediterranean climates, is modified to deal with the arid climate of the Negev Desert of Israel. Daily event based model runs were used instead of yearly model runs, and the infiltration module was modified to better represent the spatial diversity in water availability in an arid catchment. The model is calibrated for two small catchments in the Negev Desert of Israel, Halluqim and Avdat. First, a sensitivity analysis of the modified LAPSUS is performed. Pore volume appears to have an especially strong influence on the modelling results. Second, the capability of LAPSUS to deal with varying surface characteristics is assessed by comparing the water redistribution patterns in the two catchments with field data. Simulation results demonstrate that the catchments respond very differently to precipitation. Water redistribution is larger in the dominantly bedrock covered Halluqim compared to the dominantly loess covered catchment of Avdat. Consequently, Halluqim has more positions with water accumulation than Avdat, and can sustain a larger vegetation cover, including Mediterranean species. Finally, the modelled infiltration patterns are compared with vegetation cover in the catchments. The results indicate that there is a broad agreement between infiltration and vegetation patterns, but locally there is a strong mismatch, indicating that some of the involved processes are still missing from the model.

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“…This evaporative demand largely drives near-surface soil development processes in aridic (torric) moisture regimes (Liu et al, 1995). The thicker surface layer was possibly an artifact of grading activities involved in developing an adjacent roadbed, such that additional surface material was layered over the native soils (see Lyford and Qashu, 1969). The percolation of water into Usery was more thorough than that at White Tanks, which was limited by a relatively shallow impermeable horizon.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Hydropedological Assessments of Parcel-Level Infiltration in an Arid Urban Ecosystem

Shuster

Dadio²,

Burkman

et al. 2014

Soil Science Society of America Journal

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soil morphology and correspondent hydrologic data can contribute to qualifying and quantifying urban soil suitability and capacity to cycle stormwater runoff. We put particular emphasis on the possibility that residential parcels may manage their own stormwater on pervious yard areas. We assessed the morphology of Aridisol pedons (as deep cores to approximately the 3.6-m depth) via soil taxonomy, performed in situ measurements of infiltration, and measured subsoil hydraulic conductivity in two desert parks, four residential parcels, and three dual-purpose park-stormwater retention basins in the Phoenix, AZ, metropolitan area. Infiltration rates overall ranged between 0.4 and 1.7 cm h −1 . We used borehole hydraulic conductivity as a proxy for drainage, which ranged from a low of 0.0 to 13 cm h −1 . Representing a baseline, or set of "natural" hydrologic processes, native desert sites exhibited a relatively high capacity to infiltrate and redistribute rainfall, which, depending on storm intensity, may drain to washes or ephemeral streambeds via subsurface runoff. simulations of stormwater runoff on residential parcels showed that when rooftop runoff is directed to pervious patches, rainfall is entirely infiltrated and redistributed, which predicts good potential for parcel-level stormwater management. Our observation of an accumulation of fine sediments in retention basin surface soils was corroborated with local observations that drawdown times in the retention basins had increased with time. Although further assessment is needed on a wider variety of semiarid landscapes, our results suggest a positive role for residential parcels in detaining stormwater on site and perhaps easing the wet-weather burden on centralized stormwater infrastructure in semiarid urban ecosystems.

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Infiltration Rates as Affected by Desert Vegetation

Cited by 114 publications

References 1 publication

Ecohydrology: Processes and Implications for Rangelands

Ecohydrology: Processes and Implications for Rangelands

Modelling dynamic water redistribution patterns in arid catchments in the Negev Desert of Israel

Hydropedological Assessments of Parcel-Level Infiltration in an Arid Urban Ecosystem

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