Hydrological trends and the evolution of catchment research in the Alptal valley,central Switzerland

When the observation of small headwater catchments in the pre-Alpine Alptal valley (central Switzerland) started in the late 1960s, the researchers were mainly interested in questions related to floods and forest management. Investigations of geomorphological processes in the steep torrent channels followed in the 1980s, along with detailed observations of biogeochemical and ecohydrological processes in individual forest stands. More recently, research in the Alptal has addressed the impacts of climate change on water supply and runoff generation. In this article, we describe, for the first time, the evolution of catchment research at Alptal, and present new analyses of long-term trends and short-term hydrologic behaviour. Hydrometeorological time series from the past 50 years show substantial interannual variability, but only minimal long-term trends, except for the ~2°C increase in mean annual air temperature over the 50-year period, and a corresponding shift towards earlier snowmelt. Similar to previous studies in larger Alpine catchments, the decadal variations in mean annual runoff in Alptal's small research catchments reflect the long-term variability in annual precipitation. In the Alptal valley, the most evident hydrological trends were observed in late spring and are related to the substantial change in the duration of the snow cover. Streamflow and water quality are highly variable within and between hydrological events, suggesting rapid shifts in flow pathways and mixing, as well as changing connectivity of runoff-generating areas. This overview illustrates how catchment research in the Alptal has evolved in response to changing societal concerns and emerging scientific questions.     

生态水文研究前沿问题及生态水文观测试验

自1987年Ingram HAP提出生态水文学概念以来,生态水文学得到了快速的发展。2007年,“生态水文学与环境可持续性”已成为UNESCO/IHP第7阶段计划的主题之一。回顾了生态水文学概念的变迁,综述了有关术语及其科学内涵,简要分析了水循环与生物地球化学循环、水文与生态系统相互作用、水文过程与生命过程耦合、绿水及其生态作用等方面关注的科学问题及其观测研究进展;介绍了黑河流域生态水文学研究的初步认识。     

Ressi experimental catchment: Ecohydrological research in the Italian pre-Alps

Ressi is a small (2.4 ha) forested catchment located in the Italian pre-Alps. The site became an experimental catchment to investigate the water fluxes in the soil–plant–atmosphere continuum and the impact of vegetation on runoff generation in 2012. The elevation of the catchment ranges from 598 to 721 m a.s.l. and the climate is humid temperate. The bedrock consists of rhyolites and dacites; the soil is a Cambisol. The catchment is covered by a dense forest, dominated by beech, chestnut, maple, and hazel trees. The field set up includes measurements of the rainfall in an open area, streamflow at the outlet, soil moisture at various depths and locations, and depth to water table in six piezometers at a 5- or 10-min interval. Samples of precipitation, stream water, shallow groundwater and soil water are collected monthly for tracer analysis (stable isotopes (²H and ¹⁸O), electrical conductivity and major ions), and during selected rainfall–runoff events to determine the contribution of the various sources to runoff. Since 2017, soil and plant water samples have been collected to determine the sources of tree transpiration. Data collected in the period 2012–2016 are publicly available. Data collection is ongoing, and the data set is expected to be updated on an annual basis to include the most recent measurements.     

Salinity and periodic inundation controls on the soil‐plant‐atmosphere continuum of gray mangroves

Salinity and periodic inundation are both known to have a major role in shaping the ecohydrology of mangroves through their controls on water uptake, photosynthesis, stomatal conductance, gas exchanges, and nutrient availability. Salinity, in particular, can be considered one of the main abiotic regulating factors for halophytes and salt‐tolerant species, due to its influence on water use patterns and growth rate. Ecohydrological literature has rarely focused on the effects of salinity on plant transpiration, based on the fact that the terrestrial plants mostly thrive in low‐saline, unsaturated soils where the role of osmotic potential can be considered negligible. However, the effect of salinity cannot be neglected in the case of tidal species like mangroves, which have to cope with hyperosmotic conditions and waterlogging. We introduce here a first‐order ecohydrological model of the soil/plant‐atmosphere continuum of Avicennia marina—also known as gray mangrove—a highly salt‐tolerant pioneer species able to adapt to hyperarid intertidal zones and characterized by unique morphological and ecophysiological traits. The A. marina's soil‐plant‐atmosphere continuum takes explicitly into account the role of water head, osmotic water potential, and water salinity in governing plant water fluxes. A. marina's transpiration is thus modeled as a function of salinity based on a simple parameterization of salt exclusion mechanisms at the root level and a modified Jarvis' expression accounting for the effects of salinity on stomatal conductance. Consistently with previous studies investigating the physiology of mangroves in response to different environmental drivers, our results highlight the major influence of salinity on mangrove transpiration when contrasted with other potential stressors such as waterlogging and water stress.     

Hammond Hill Research Catchment: Supporting hydrologic investigations of rooting zone and vegetation water dynamics under climate change

The Hammond Hill Research Catchment (HH) is a small (120 ha), temperate, second order tributary to Six Mile Creek, Cayuga Lake, and the Great Lakes (42.42°, −76.32°). The HH has been monitored since January 2017 for the purpose of understanding how recent infiltration mixes with antecedent soil water on hillslope forest floors and the spatial and temporal patterns of Root Water Uptake (RWU) by temperate northeastern US tree species (eastern hemlock [Tsuga canadensis], American beech [Fagus grandifolia], and sugar maple [Acer saccharum]). These data are informing us about the hydrologic consequences of anticipated tree species composition change and supporting the development of more refined ecohydrological models. The glaciated catchment is underlain by a shallow confining siltstone layer (1–1.5 m depth) and densely covered with an approximately 60 year old regrowth mixed species forest of hemlock, beech, and other deciduous tree species common to the northeastern US. Current datasets from the HH include precipitation snow water equivalent, discharge, and associated isotopic water compositions, δ²H & δ¹⁸O. Measurements of (top 10 cm) soil water content, as well as bulk soil water and hemlock and beech xylem isotopic compositions are made at several locations across a topographic wetness gradient. The near-term role of the HH is to support an understanding of the environmental and ecological drivers of plant RWU competition. All data from the HH are publicly available.     

Assessing the ‘two water worlds’ hypothesis and water sources for native and exotic evergreen species in south‐central Chile

Recent studies using water‐stable isotopes (δ¹⁸O and δ²H) have suggested an ecohydrological separation of water flowing to streams or recharging groundwater and water used by trees, known as the ‘two water worlds’ (TWW) hypothesis. In this study, we measured water isotopic composition in precipitation [open field and throughfall, i.e. local meteoric water line (LMWL)] and the mobile water compartment (i.e. stream and soil solution), bulk soil water and xylem water over a period of 1.5 years in two headwater catchments: NF, covered with old growth native evergreen forest (Aetoxicon punctatum, Laureliopsis philippiana and Eucriphya cordifolia), and EP, covered with 4 and 16‐year‐old Eucalyptus nitens stands. Our results show that precipitation, stream and soil solution plot approximately along the LMWL, while xylem waters from all studied tree species plot below the LMWL, supporting the TWW hypothesis. However, we also found evidence of ecohydrological connectivity during the wet season, likely controlled by the amount of antecedent precipitation. These observations hold for all investigated tree species. On both sites, a different precipitation source for stream and xylem water was observed. However, in EP, bulk soil showed a similar precipitation source as xylem water from both E. nitens stands. This suggests that E. nitens may use water that is recharging the bulk soil compartment. We conclude that under a rainy temperate climate, the TWW hypothesis is temporal and does not apply during wet seasons. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Ecohydrology-a challenging multidisciplinary research perspective / Ecohydrologie: une perspective stimulante de recherche multidisciplinaire

Abstract

Ecohydrology is the science that studies the mutual interaction between the hydrological cycle and ecosystems. Such an interaction is especially intense in water-controlled ecosystems, where water may be a limiting factor, not only because of its scarcity, but also because of its intermittent and unpredictable appearance. Soil moisture is the key variable modulating the complex dynamics of the climate-soil-vegetation system and controlling the spatial and temporal patterns of vegetation. In this note the authors' perspective to the field is discussed and some open questions are outlined.     

Topographically moderated soil water seasons impact vegetation dynamics in semiarid mountain catchments: Illustrations from the Dry Creek Experimental Watershed,Idaho, USA

Water stored in soils, in part, controls vegetation productivity and the duration of growing seasons in wildland ecosystems. Soil water is the dynamic product of precipitation, evapotranspiration and soil properties, all of which vary across complex terrain making it challenging to decipher the specific controls that soil water has on growing season dynamics. We assess how soil water use by plants varies across elevations and aspects in the Dry Creek Experimental Watershed in southwest Idaho, USA, a mountainous, semiarid catchment that spans low elevation rain to high elevation snow regimes. We compare trends in soil water and soil temperature with corresponding trends in insolation, precipitation and vegetation productivity, and we observe trends in the timing, rate and duration of soil water extraction by plants across ranges in elevation and aspect. The initiation of growth-supporting conditions, indicated by soil warming, occurs 58 days earlier at lower, compared with higher, elevations. However, growth-supporting conditions also end earlier at lower elevations due to the onset of soil water depletion 29 days earlier than at higher elevations. A corresponding shift in peak NDVI timing occurs 61 days earlier at lower elevations. Differences in timing also occur with aspect, with most threshold timings varying by 14–30 days for paired north- and south-facing sites at similar elevations. While net primary productivity nearly doubles at higher elevations, the duration of the warm-wet period of active water use does not vary systematically with elevation. Instead, the greater ecosystem productivity is related to increased soil water storage capacity, which supports faster soil water use and growth rates near the summer solstice and peak insolation. Larger soil water storage does not appear to extend the duration of the growing season, but rather supports higher growing season intensity when wet-warm soil conditions align with high insolation. These observations highlight the influence of soil water storage capacity in dictating ecological function in these semiarid steppe climatic regimes.     

水源涵养功能概念的生态和水文视角辨析

水源涵养是评价陆地生态系统服务功能的重要指标,然而学界对水源涵养功能概念和计算方法仍存在诸多争论。这一方面说明水源涵养功能评估具有重要的现实意义,同时也说明其概念的复杂性和模糊性,亟需从生态学和水文学的基本理论出发,厘清水源涵养功能概念的内涵和评估方法,促进科学决策和有效管理。研究水源涵养功能时,生态学家更关注陆地生态系统的蓄水能力（Smax）,而水文学家更关注流域的产流量（Q）,两者均具有合理性,但各有侧重,若不分别辨析,极易造成概念混淆。理论和数据分析表明,蓄水能力和产流量虽然联系紧密,但概念完全不同。陆地生态系统的Smax决定了流域对降水的分配：即蒸散发（绿水）和Q（蓝水）,Smax和Q在降水量一定的情况下往往存在此消彼长的关系。研究发现生态系统的根区蓄水能力（SRmax）是联系绿水和蓝水的核心要素,是水源涵养功能评估的关键变量。大尺度根区蓄水能力主要由气候决定,可借鉴工程水文中设计水库的累积曲线法,根据生态系统用水的生存策略通过气候反演。最后,本文提出3点建议：(1)在实践中分别评估生态系统的绿水和蓝水涵养功能;(2)进一步全面考虑冰川积雪、地下水等多要素的水源涵养功能;(3)...     

Modelling ecohydrological feedbacks in forest and grassland plots under a prolonged drought anomaly in Central Europe 2018–2020

Recent studies have highlighted the importance of understanding ecohydrological drought feedbacks to secure water resources under a changing climate and increasing anthropogenic impacts. In this study, we monitored and modelled feedbacks in the soil–plant-atmosphere continuum to the European drought summer 2018 and the following 2 years. The physically based, isotope-aided model EcH₂O-iso was applied to generic vegetation plots (forest and grassland) in the lowland, groundwater-dominated research catchment Demnitzer Millcreek (NE Germany; 66 km²). We included, inter alia, soil water isotope data in the model calibration and quantified changing “blue” (groundwater recharge) and “green” (evapotranspiration) water fluxes and ages under each land use as the drought progressed. Novel plant xylem isotope data were excluded from calibration but were compared with simulated root uptake signatures in model validation. Results indicated inter-site differences in the dynamics of soil water storage and fluxes with contrasting water age both during the drought and the subsequent 2 years. Forest vegetation consistently showed a greater moisture stress, more rapid recovery and higher variability in root water uptake depths from a generally younger soil water storage. In contrast, the grassland site, which had more water-retentive soils, showed higher and older soil water storage and groundwater recharge fluxes. The damped storage and flux dynamics under grassland led to a slower return to younger water ages at depth. Such evidence-based and quantitative differences in ecohydrological feedbacks to drought stress in contrasting soil-vegetation units provide important insights into Critical Zone water cycling. This can help inform future progress in the monitoring, modelling and development of climate mitigation strategies in drought-sensitive lowlands.