Transpiration and evaporation from heather Moorland

The energy balance of an upland heath dominated by heather (Calluna vulgaris) was measured in dry and wet weather. Median values of both transpiration and evaporation rates were ca. 2 mm hr^-1. The median Bowen ratio for the dry canopy was 2.0 and for the wet canopy 0.6. On dry days the median value of the saturation deficit was only 3.8 mb and that of the climatological resistance was 30 s m^-1. The bulk stomatal resistance increased from ca. 50 s m ^-2 in the morning to over 290 s m^-1 in the afternoon with an overall median value of 110 s m^-1. Transpiration from the dry canopy was controlled by a combination of small saturation deficits and large stomatal resistances. The median value of the boundary-layer resistance of the canopy was 22 s m^-1 and was low partly because of a large low-level drag coefficient. Saturation deficits on wet days were close to zero and evaporation of intercepted water proceeded at close to the equilibrium rate, being largely limited by the low fluxes of available energy. The water loss from heather was compared with simulated losses from coniferous forest, herbaceous crops and grassland in the same conditions to evaluate the effects of vegetation on water loss from catchments.Laboratorio de Ecologia, Dept. de Biologia Vegetal, Universidade de Brasilia, 70 910 — Brasila — DF, Brazil.     

ECOLOGICAL CONSEQUENCES OF SOIL EROSION AND SEDIMENTATION

IHISTORICALRECORDSSoilerosioniscloselyrelatedtorainfallandgreatlyenhancedbydeforestationforagricultUreandurbansuburbandevelopment.Amongtheeffectsofsoilerosionarethelossoftopsoilandaconsequentdecreaseincropproductivity.Erodedsoilisalsodepositedintoaquaticsystems,thuslesseningwaterqualityandleadingtodepletionoftheaquaticfoodresource.Italsocausessiltationofwaterwaysmakingthemineffectiveforcommercialtransportaswellasincreasingtheriskoffloods.Theimpactofsedimenterosionanddepositiononhumanso…     

Intra-clinothem variability in sedimentary texture and process regime recorded down slope profiles

Shelf-margin clinothem successions can archive process interactions at the shelf to slope transition, and their architecture provides constraints on the interplay of factors that control basin-margin evolution. However, detailed textural analysis and facies distributions from shelf to slope transitions remain poorly documented. This study uses quantitative grain-size and sorting data from coeval shelf and slope deposits of a single clinothem that crops out along a 5 km long, dip-parallel transect of the Eocene Sobrarbe Deltaic Complex (Ainsa Basin, south-central Pyrenees, Spain). Systematic sampling of sandstone beds tied to measured sections has captured vertical and basinward changes in sedimentary texture and facies distributions at an intra-clinothem scale. Two types of hyperpycnal flow-related slope deposits, both rich in mica and terrestrial organic matter, are differentiated according to grain size, sorting and bed geometry: (i) sustained hyperpycnal flow deposits, which are physically linked to coarse channelized sediments in the shelf setting and which deposit sand down the complete slope profile; (ii) episodic hyperpycnal flow deposits, which are disconnected from, and incise into, shelf sands and which are associated with sediment bypass of the proximal slope and coarse-grained sand deposition on the medial and distal slope. Both types of hyperpycnites are interbedded with relatively homogenous, organic-free and mica-free, well-sorted, very fine-grained sandstones, which are interpreted to be remobilized from wave-dominated shelf environments; these wave-dominated deposits are found only on the proximal and medial slope. Coarse-grained sediment bypass into the deeper-water slope settings is therefore dominated by episodic hyperpycnal flows, whilst sustained hyperpycnal flows and turbidity currents remobilizing wave-dominated shelf deposits are responsible for the full range of grain sizes in the proximal and medial slope, thus facilitating clinoform progradation. This novel dataset highlights previously undocumented intra-clinothem variability related to updip changes in the shelf process-regime, which is therefore a key factor controlling downdip architecture and resulting sedimentary texture.     

Stratigraphic evidence of human disturbance in an estuary

Prior to European settlement, oligohaline and mesohaline sections of Chesapeake Bay draining Piedmont saprolite supported diverse and abundant diatom and macrophyte populations. Compositional changes in diatoms and macrophytes in oligohaline sections correspond with 17th- and 19th-century deforestation and increased siltation, while effects on downstream populations were less notable. After deforestation, previously sparse diatom populations in a mesohaline estuary draining sandy Coastal Plain soils became more abundant. Fertilization of cultivated land was accompanied by increased production of both attached and free-floating diatoms. After the discharge of sewage, diatom populations increased enormously in the affected areas, followed by a dramatic decrease. The decrease suggests silica limitation after intense phosphorus enrichment. The loss of macrophytes and increase in planktonic diatoms in oligohaline areas in recent years resemble the historical sequences observed in lakes undergoing eutrophication. However, in the estuary, similar declines have also occurred in macrophyte populations in mesohaline areas where eutrophication is much less severe, but where chlorine and herbicide toxicity during the past 20 yr is similar to upstream areas.     

Spring flux as an indicator of source geomorphology,substrata, and temperature conditions in springs

Hydrogeology Journal - Spring flux (m/s), defined as spring flow (m3/s) divided by the area over which groundwater emerges (m2) at a spring, provides a meaningful way to distinguish between...     

Marine-Derived Fungi in Korea

Ocean Science Journal - Studies on marine fungi (termed as ‘marine-derived fungi’ in this paper) have been significantly increasing worldwide because of the critical role displayed by...     

Farmers and fallowing: agricultural change in Kigezi District, Uganda

Focusing on the area of Kigezi, in south-western Uganda, this article examines land use change over a 50-year period. It shows that Kigezi, an area long considered to be suffering the effects of overpopulation, has never suffered the environmental catastrophes that have long been predicted. Instead, research suggests that farmers have successfully managed their land and maintained productivity.     

Estimation of hydraulic conductivity in an alluvial system using temperatures

Well water temperatures are often collected simultaneously with water levels; however, temperature data are generally considered only as a water quality parameter and are not utilized as an environmental tracer. In this paper, water levels and seasonal temperatures are used to estimate hydraulic conductivities in a stream-aquifer system. To demonstrate this method, temperatures and water levels are analyzed from six observation wells along an example study site, the Russian River in Sonoma County, California. The range in seasonal ground water temperatures in these wells varied from <0.2 degrees C in two wells to approximately 8 degrees C in the other four wells from June to October 2000. The temperature probes in the six wells are located at depths between 3.5 and 7.1 m relative to the river channel. Hydraulic conductivities are estimated by matching simulated ground water temperatures to the observed ground water temperatures. An anisotropy of 5 (horizontal to vertical hydraulic conductivity) generally gives the best fit to the observed temperatures. Estimated conductivities vary over an order of magnitude in the six locations analyzed. In some locations, a change in the observed temperature profile occurred during the study, most likely due to deposition of fine-grained sediment and organic matter plugging the streambed. A reasonable fit to this change in the temperature profile is obtained by decreasing the hydraulic conductivity in the simulations. This study demonstrates that seasonal ground water temperatures monitored in observation wells provide an effective means of estimating hydraulic conductivities in alluvial aquifers.     

Salt Marshes on Substrate Enriched in Organic Matter: The Case of Ombrogenic Atlantic Salt Marshes

Ombrogenic Atlantic salt marshes are defined as areas of halophytic, terrestrial vegetation which are periodically flooded by the tide and have a predominant underlying organic substrate comprising of wood and/or Sphagnum peat that formed under freshwater conditions. The objective of this study was to determine to what extent salt marsh plant ecology and, specifically, vegetation composition and zonation relate to this underlying substrate of organic matter (peat). A vegetation survey was carried out on nine salt marshes, three on peat substrate and two on sand, mud and sand/mud, respectively. In parallel, key edaphic variables were measured including pH, conductivity, organic content, moisture content and nutrients: ammonium, nitrate and phosphorus. Salt marshes on peat substrate are distinct. Ammonium content was twice the maximum reported in other salt marsh studies, while the vegetation composition of salt marshes on peat substrate was significantly different from that of other salt marshes. Salt marshes on peat substrate were found to be higher in species diversity and richness and characterised by a predominantly forb and rush community. However, some common salt marsh species, such as Atriplex portulacoides and Spartina anglica were absent from salt marshes on peat. Ordination analysis revealed that zonation was primarily associated with conductivity on peat substrates. In contrast, moisture plays a greater role in zonation within non-peat salt marshes. The findings confirm that the high organic matter content of ombrogenic Atlantic salt marshes is associated with distinct vegetation composition.