Use of stable isotopes of water to determine the origin of water used by the vegetation and to partition evapotranspiration. A case study from HAPEX-Sahel

Brunel, Jean-Pierre; Walker, Glen; Dighton, John; Monteny, Bruno

doi:10.1016/s0022-1694(96)03188-5

Cited by 77 publications

(66 citation statements)

References 19 publications

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“…Other possible water sources, like deep water, can also be identified using deuterium labelling as recently demonstrated in a Mediterranean stand of Pinus nigra [108]. The isotopic signature of water uptake is also very efficient to analyse mixed stands with contrasting root systems exploiting different water sources from contrasting soil compartments or directly from the water table [16,22,42,99]. Unfortunately, the technical limitations of isotopic tools are numerous, particularly for applying it within forest stands.…”

Section: Soil-root Interface and Water Absorptionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Temperate forest trees and stands under severe drought: a review of ecophysiological responses, adaptation processes and long-term consequences

et al. 2006

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-The extreme drought event that occurred in Western Europe during 2003 highlighted the need to understand the key processes that may allow trees and stands to overcome such severe water shortages. We therefore reviewed the current knowledge available about such processes. First, impact of drought on exchanges at soil-root and canopy-atmosphere interfaces are presented and illustrated with examples from water and CO 2 flux measurements. The decline in transpiration and water uptake and in net carbon assimilation due to stomatal closure has been quantified and modelled. The resulting models were used to compute water balance at stand level basing on the 2003 climate in nine European forest sites from the CARBOEUROPE network. Estimates of soil water deficit were produced and provided a quantitative index of soil water shortage and therefore of the intensity of drought stress experienced by trees during summer 2003. In a second section, we review the irreversible damage that could be imposed on water transfer within trees and particularly within xylem. A special attention was paid to the inter-specific variability of these properties among a wide range of tree species. The inter-specific diversity of hydraulic and stomatal responses to soil water deficit is also discussed as it might reflect a large diversity in traits potentially related to drought tolerance. Finally, tree decline and mortality due to recurrent or extreme drought events are discussed on the basis of a literature review and recent decline studies. The potential involvement of hydraulic dysfunctions or of deficits in carbon storage as causes for the observed long term (several years) decline of tree growth and development and for the onset of tree dieback is discussed. As an example, the starch content in stem tissues recorded at the end of the 2003's summer was used to predict crown conditions of oak trees during the following spring: low starch contents were correlated with large twig and branch decline in the crown of trees. drought / water balance / time lag effect / hydraulic properties / dieback Résumé -Arbres et peuplements forestiers tempérés soumis à sécheresse : une revue des réponses écophysiologiques, des processus d'adaptation et des conséquences à long terme. La sécheresse exceptionnelle de 2003 a été l'occasion de faire le point de nos connaissances sur les mécanismes écophysiologiques permettant aux arbres de traverser un tel évènement climatique extrême. L'analyse a été conduite à l'échelle de l'arbre et du peuplement, tandis que l'intensité de la sécheresse a été quantifiée à l'aide d'un calcul de bilan hydrique sur neuf sites forestiers européens contrastés du réseau CARBOEUROPE. Le rôle du couvert dans les échanges avec l'atmosphère est rappelé puis intégré dans l'analyse des réductions de bilan d'eau et de carbone en 2003 dus à la régulation stomatique. Les caractéristiques du complexe sol-racine, important à la fois pour l'accès à la ressource et à l'efficience de son absorption, constituent un des premiers traits d'ada...

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Section: Soil-root Interface and Water Absorptionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Temperate forest trees and stands under severe drought: a review of ecophysiological responses, adaptation processes and long-term consequences

et al. 2006

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“…The selected stems were near the soil and below the first node. The epidermis of the stems was removed because it may have been in isotopic equilibrium with the isotopically depleted atmospheric water vapor (Brunel et al, 1997). Every stem was cut into pieces of 2-3 cm length pieces that were placed in a vial and sealed with parafilm.…”

Section: Water Sampling and Isotope Analysesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…O) have been widely used to study hydrologic cycles (Gat, 1996), ecological processes (Brunel et al, 1997), water quality evolution (Butler II, 2007), contaminant sources identification (Popescu et al, 2015), and palaeoclimates (Maduabuchi et al, 2006) across multiple temporal and spatial scales. The stable isotopes tracing technique provides an effective and unintrusive way to assess plant root water uptake patterns (Ehleringer and Dawson, 1992).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Using stable isotopes to determine seasonal variations in water uptake of summer maize under different fertilization treatments

Song

2016

Science of The Total Environment

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“…However, previous studies Brunel et al, 1991Brunel et al, , 1997 carried out in arid and semi-arid regions, have shown that water was only available for the vegetation to use either from the very top soil layer (0-50 cm), directly derived from recent rainfall, or from the groundwater, which may often be very deep (40 m or more). At one of our field sites (Site S) the regional water table was quite deep, between 30 and 40 m. At Site B, its depth was probably between 5 and 10 m (information from the nearby mine pumping station).…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 97%

“…In these habitats mesquite probably develops an extensive surface root system, which can compete actively with those of grassland, and possibly just a single tap root giving access to groundwater when needed. Functional variation related to the sources of water used by trees of semi-arid regions has likewise been observed: in Australia for eucalypts (Eucalyptus camadulensis) (Mensforth et al, 1994) and for phreatophytic plants (Dawson & Pate, 1996); in Niger for Guiera senegalensis (Brunel, 1995(Brunel, , 1997; and in the American southwest for cottonwood (Populus) (Snyder et al, 1998), boxelder (Kolb et al, 1997), woody riparian phreatophytes (Busch et al, 1992), pinyon and juniper (Flanagan et al, 1992), and cold desert shrub community (Lin et al, 1996).…”

Section: The δmentioning

confidence: 99%

Sources of water used by natural mesquite vegetation in a semi-arid region of northern Mexico

Brunel¹

2009

Hydrological Sciences Journal

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Vegetation structure in semi-arid regions of northern Mexico and the southwestern USA has changed dramatically over the last century; shrubs such as mesquite (Prosopis sp.) have expanded into, and have become dominant in, ecosystems that once supported semi-arid grassland. The upper San Pedro River watershed, which extends from northern Sonora (Mexico) to southeastern Arizona (USA), highlights these changes. Between 1973 and 1992, grasslands decreased by 18% and the total area dominated by mesquite increased during the same period by 412%. In the areas where the density of mesquite shrub is medium to high, grass has completely disappeared under the shrub canopy and has been replaced by bare soil. Undoubtedly these cover changes have affected surface-atmosphere interactions by introducing a different partitioning of net available energy into sensible and latent heat flux. At the same time, different root system and root density and plant physiology have introduced a change to the surface water balance, reducing inflitration and increasing runoff. Our study addressed the sources of water used by mesquite (Prosopis velutina) along a natural gradient from an area of high mesquite cover with no herbaceous grass cover, to open savanna with high grass cover and widely spaced mesquite. The presented results from the SALSA 1997 monsoon-season campaign (July-October) show that mesquite shrubs that have access to both groundwater and surface water use surface water when available, potentially competing with grass for surface water and out-competing grass during successive periods of drought when only groundwater is available.Key words oxygen-18; mesquite; Prosopis velutina; water use; Sonora, Mexico; Arizona, USA; semi-desert grassland Sources de l'eau utilisée par une végétation naturelle de mesquite dans une région semi-aride du nord du MexiqueRésumé La structure de la végétation dans les régions semi-arides du nord-est du Mexique et du sud-ouest des Etats Unis a changé d'une façon spectaculaire au cours du dernier siècle. Une végétation de buissons de type mesquite (Prosopis sp.) s'est répandue partout pour devenir dominante dans ce qui était autrefois un écosystème de prairies semi-arides. Le haut bassin de la rivière San Pedro qui s'étend du nord-est du Sonora (Mexique) au sud-est de l'Arizona (USA) met bien en relief ces changements. Entre 1973 et 1992, les prairies ont diminué de 18% alors que pendant le même temps la superficie totale dominée par les mesquites s'accroissait de 412%. Dans les zones où la densité de mesquites est moyenne ou forte, l'herbe a complètement disparu sous les arbres et a été remplacée par du sol nu. Il ne fait aucun doute que ces changements de couverture végétale ont affecté les interactions surface-atmosphère en introduisant une répartition différente de l'énergie nette disponible en flux de chaleur sensible et latente. En même temps, l'accroissement du ruissellement, la diminution de l'infiltration mais aussi le développement de systèmes d'enracinement différents, et des densit...

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Use of stable isotopes of water to determine the origin of water used by the vegetation and to partition evapotranspiration. A case study from HAPEX-Sahel

Cited by 77 publications

References 19 publications

Temperate forest trees and stands under severe drought: a review of ecophysiological responses, adaptation processes and long-term consequences

Temperate forest trees and stands under severe drought: a review of ecophysiological responses, adaptation processes and long-term consequences

Using stable isotopes to determine seasonal variations in water uptake of summer maize under different fertilization treatments

Sources of water used by natural mesquite vegetation in a semi-arid region of northern Mexico

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