Northern landscapes are dominated by a mosaic of lakes and streams, yet only a limited number of studies have explored how these lake-stream networks influence streamflow regimes. In order to gain further insight into the hydrologic behaviour of lake-stream systems, we conducted a study using long-term streamflow data to investigate the annual-, seasonal-and event-scale streamflow regimes of a lakestream network at the Turkey Lakes Watershed (TLW) in central Ontario, Canada.Streamflow metrics were compared for seven lake and 12 no-lake catchments within the TLW, in addition to 14 no-lake catchments from other forested landscapes. It was difficult to attribute patterns in annual streamflow regimes to the influence of lakes due to the confounding influence of catchment size; however, streamflow regimes appeared to be less flashy at locations with more lake influence. In addition,
Stream temperature is a critical control on aquatic habitat and a key forest management concern in many jurisdictions. Most research on stream temperature response to forest harvesting is from coniferous forests in rain‐dominated watersheds and focused on the first few years following harvesting. In contrast, we know less about the harvesting impacts on stream temperature for silviculture approaches typically used in northern hardwood forests that are influenced by snow. We addressed this knowledge gap by using four decades (1980 to 2020) of spot water temperature measurements recorded at three treatment and two reference catchments (areas 4.5 to 69 ha) as part of a long‐term water quality monitoring programme at the Turkey Lakes Watershed study near the eastern shores of Lake Superior. We were able to control for diel and seasonal biases in the spot temperature measurements and found that clearcut harvesting showed a summer temperature increase that persisted for 5 to 7 years after harvesting. Shelterwood and selection harvest did not exhibit a detectable change in stream temperature. These responses are consistent with observed changes in forest canopy through time and between harvesting approaches. In addition, the stream temperature responses were likely muted due to the streams being short and characterized by intermittent flow conditions, as well as the potential moderating influence of increased subsurface runoff following harvesting. Our results highlight how insights can be extracted from routine water quality programmes that were hitherto unrecognized.
Lichens and mosses are among the first organisms to colonize the open bedrock of eastern Georgian Bay, Ontario making them essential for primary soil formation and ecosystem succession, while also providing nesting habitat for turtle species‐at‐risk. However, the slow growing nature of lichen and moss makes them vulnerable to ecohydrological stresses caused by climate and land‐use change. In order to better understand how lichen and moss will respond to stressors, we examined which ecohydrological factors (e.g., near‐surface soil moisture and temperature) control the CO2 exchange of lichen (Cladonia spp.) and moss (Polytrichum spp.) on rock barrens, and the time of year growth primarily occurs. Net ecosystem productivity (NEP) was significantly greater in the wet period of the growing season than the dry, with an estimated difference of 0.7 μmol m−2 s−1 for lichen, 2.9 μmol m−2 s−1 for moss, and 2.5 μmol m−2 s−1 for a moss and lichen mix. These findings indicate that the wet portions of the growing season are critical for growth, while lichen and moss have little to no productivity during the dry period. Our results indicate that near‐surface soil moisture is an indicator of the CO2 exchange of lichen and moss, and this relationship varies among cover types. For the geographical regions where warm, dry conditions are expected to increase in duration and frequency with climate change, lichen and moss NEP will likely decrease, thus limiting the long‐term availability of nesting habitat for turtle species‐at‐risk.
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