Catchment Classification and Hydrologic Similarity

Wagener, Thorsten; Sivapalan, Murugesu; Troch, P. A.; Woods, Ross

doi:10.1111/j.1749-8198.2007.00039.x

Cited by 687 publications

(640 citation statements)

References 107 publications

(214 reference statements)

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“…while it is possible to include in the study a much greater number of catchments, the similarity analysis can provide only a first-order classification (Wagener et al, 2007;Sawicz et al, 2011). On the other hand, streamflow may be seen as an integrator of all climatic and morphologic conditions of a given basin (Samaniego et al, 2010), thus justifying such an empirical approach.…”

Section: E Toth: Catchment Classificationmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The identification of groups of hydrologically similar catchments is a fundamental issue in both operational and research hydrology: it is essential to ensure the transferability of information when applying regionalisation methods, but can also provide valuable indications to improve the understanding of the dominant physical phenomena in the different groups (McDonnell and Woods, 2004;Wagener et al, 2007;Sawicz et al, 2011). The similarity may be evaluated in terms of signatures of catchments' functional responses, quantifying the characteristics of the hydrologic response that provide insight into the behaviour of the catchment (Atkinson et al, 2002;Wagener et al, 2007;Yilmaz et al, 2008;Oudin et al, 2010).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The similarity may be evaluated in terms of signatures of catchments' functional responses, quantifying the characteristics of the hydrologic response that provide insight into the behaviour of the catchment (Atkinson et al, 2002;Wagener et al, 2007;Yilmaz et al, 2008;Oudin et al, 2010). A comprehensive set of measures describing all aspects of the catchment hydrology (such as meteorological observations, soil moisture content, vegetation patterns, etc.)…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Catchment classification based on characterisation of streamflow and precipitation time series

Toth

2013

Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci.

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Abstract. The formulation of objective procedures for the delineation of homogeneous groups of catchments is a fundamental issue in both operational and research hydrology. For assessing catchment similarity, a variety of hydrological information may be considered; in this paper, gauged sites are characterised by a set of streamflow signatures that include a representation, albeit simplified, of the properties of fine time-scale flow series and in particular of the dynamic components of the data, in order to keep into account the sequential order and the stochastic nature of the streamflow process.The streamflow signatures are provided in input to a clustering algorithm based on unsupervised SOM neural networks, obtaining groups of catchments with a clear hydrological distinctiveness, as highlighted by the identification of the main patterns of the input variables in the different classes and the interpretation of their interrelations. In addition, even if no geographical, morphological nor climatological information is provided in input to the SOM network, the clusters exhibit an overall consistency as far as location, altitude and precipitation regime are concerned.In order to assign ungauged sites to such groups, the catchments are represented through a parsimonious set of morphometric and pluviometric variables, including also indexes that attempt to synthesise the variability and correlation properties of the precipitation time series, thus providing information on the type of weather forcing that is specific to each basin. Following a principal components analysis, needed for synthesizing and better understanding the morpho-pluviometric catchment properties, a discriminant analysis finally assigns the ungauged catchments, through a leave-one-out cross validation, to one of the above identified hydrologic response classes. The approach delivers a quite satisfactory identification of the membership of ungauged catchments to the streamflow-based classes, since the comparison of the two cluster sets shows a misclassification rate of around 20 %.Overall results indicate that the inclusion of information on the properties of the fine time-scale streamflow and rainfall time series may be a promising way for better representing the hydrologic and climatic character of the study catchments.

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Section: E Toth: Catchment Classificationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Catchment classification based on characterisation of streamflow and precipitation time series

Toth

2013

Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci.

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“…By 'similarity', we mean a quantifiable parameter capable of discerning how similar or dissimilar catchments are with respect to their hydrological response (Wagener et al, 2007). While many potential similarity parameters are available to investigate structure (e.g.…”

Section: Catchment Characteristics and Structurementioning

confidence: 99%

Controls on snowmelt water mean transit times in northern boreal catchments

Lyon

Laudon

Seibert

et al. 2010

Hydrological Processes

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Abstract:Catchment-scale transit times for water are increasingly being recognized as an important control on geochemical processes. In this study, snowmelt water mean transit times (MTTs) were estimated for the 15 Krycklan research catchments in northern boreal Sweden. The snowmelt water MTTs were assumed to be representative of the catchment-scale hydrologic response during the spring thaw period and, as such, may be considered to be a component of the catchment's overall MTT. These snowmelt water MTTs were empirically related to catchment characteristics and landscape structure represented by using different indices of soil cover, topography and catchment similarity. Mire wetlands were shown to be significantly correlated to snowmelt MTTs for the studied catchments. In these wetlands, shallow ice layers form that have been shown to serve as impervious boundaries to vertical infiltration during snowmelt periods and, thus, alter the flow pathways of water in the landscape. Using a simple thought experiment, we could estimate the potential effect of thawing of ice layers on snowmelt hydrologic response using the empirical relationship between landscape structure (represented using a catchment-scale Pe number) and hydrologic response. The result of this thought experiment was that there could be a potential increase of 20-45% in catchment snowmelt water MTTs for the Krycklan experimental catchments. It is therefore possible that climatic changes present competing influences on the hydrologic response of northern boreal catchments that need to be considered. For example, MTTs may tend to decrease during some times of the year due to an acceleration in the hydrologic cycle, while they tend to increase MTTs during other times of the year due to shifts in hydrologic flow pathways. The balance between the competing influences on a catchment's MTT has consequences on climatic feedbacks as it could influence hydrological and biogeochemical cycles at the catchment scale for northern latitude boreal catchments.

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“…The inclusion of varying spatiotemporal scales within a classification system provides the user with the capability to account for the full scope of flow-ecology relationships within a study area (Brandt 2000;Rowntree and Wadeson 1998). Approaches to capture spatiotemporal variation in rivers can also be seen in studies that attempt to classify catchments under varying hydrologic periods as a means to provide predictions to determine how environmental impacts in one system could influence another similar system (Wagener et al 2007;Snelder, Biggs, and Weatherhead 2004;Reidy Liermann et al 2011). …”

Section: Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

GIS Framework for Large River Geomorphic Classification to Aid in the Evaluation of Flow-Ecology Relationships

Vernon¹,

Arntzen²,

Richmond³

et al. 2013

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Providing a means to quantitatively define flow-ecology relationships is integral in establishing flow regimes that are mutually beneficial to power production and ecological needs. This paper presents a geographic information system (GIS) framework for large river geomorphic classification that is flexible, accurate, and easily integrated with Ecological Limits of Hydrologic Alteration (ELOHA) initiatives. A case study was conducted integrating the base geomorphic aspect of this framework with the Modular Aquatic Simulation System two-dimensional (MASS2) hydraulic model and field collected data to establish optimal juvenile salmonid rearing habitat under varying flow regimes throughout an impounded portion of the lower Snake River, USA. Defining regions of optimal juvenile salmonid habitat at varying flows was used to distinguish areas that have a high potential for the creation of additional shallow water habitat. Findings indicated that the potential to create additional shallow water habitat does exist for juvenile salmonid rearing regardless of the flow scenario (discharge exceedence levels of 1, 25, 50, 75, and 99 percent) for the sample time frame (May -June 2011). The left-bank habitat of the lower Snake River was also found to be preferable for juvenile salmon rearing compared to right-bank habitat. The results from the case study suggest that the GIS framework is a capable tool when used to diagnose flow-ecology relationships. Additionally, an alternative hydrologic classification system is explored that couples well with the geographically independent nature of this GIS framework. Future applications of this framework are to utilize it in other large river systems throughout the contiguous United States. The framework also allows for the organization of large river data to be quickly accessed and used for multi-river comparison and analysis. Future development of a backend database within an interactive web platform would be highly beneficial to create a readily available and standardized mechanism to facilitate classification efforts conducted at the national scale.iv

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Catchment Classification and Hydrologic Similarity

Cited by 687 publications

References 107 publications

Catchment classification based on characterisation of streamflow and precipitation time series

Catchment classification based on characterisation of streamflow and precipitation time series

Controls on snowmelt water mean transit times in northern boreal catchments

GIS Framework for Large River Geomorphic Classification to Aid in the Evaluation of Flow-Ecology Relationships

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