Ecohydrology of groundwater‐dependent ecosystems: 1. Stochastic water table dynamics

Laio, Francesco; Tamea, Stefania; Ridolfi, Luca; D’Odorico, Paolo; Rodrı́guez-Iturbe, Ignacio

doi:10.1029/2008wr007292

Cited by 87 publications

(102 citation statements)

References 32 publications

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“…We integrated existing process-based models of shallow water table [Laio et al, 2009] and soil moisture [Laio et al, 2001] dynamics with a model of wetland hydrology to simulate daily values of wetland stage, upland water table elevation and soil moisture content, and base flow delivery in an idealized landscape (A 5 10 km 2 ), in which both the total area and individual size of GIWs were varied (Figure 1b). The model landscape represents low-relief regions where small GIWs exist within a matrix of uplands (e.g., southeastern coastal plain flatwoods/cypress dome systems, prairie pothole region of the northern Great Plains, Nebraska sandhills, Atlantic coastal plain pocosins [Tiner, 2003]).…”

Section: Model Descriptionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…(1) Laio et al, 2009]. The water table exerts no influence on the low moisture zone through capillary rise because of extremely low hydraulic conductivities at s < s fc [Laio et al, 2009].…”

Section: Climate Simulationmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The water table exerts no influence on the low moisture zone through capillary rise because of extremely low hydraulic conductivities at s < s fc [Laio et al, 2009]. The low moisture zone was therefore modeled as a separate system (section 2.4) that influences the high moisture zone and water table through soil water storage capacity (i.e., it serves to reduce water table recharge from rain events).…”

Section: Climate Simulationmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The local sink/source reversal observed in GIWs may buffer surficial aquifer and base flow dynamics, a phenomenon we refer to as landscape hydrologic capacitance, reflecting the predicted ability of areas with high S y to modulate water level variation given connectivity with areas of lower S y . Previous research has investigated the influence of S y,Soil on shallow water table dynamics [Laio et al, 2009], as well as stage-varying S y effects on wetland water levels [Sumner, 2007]; however, the integrated effects of spatially varying S y values between uplands and wetlands have not been explored. In this work, we coupled models of shallow water table and soil moisture dynamics with a wetland water balance model to simulate the effects of total wetland area and individual wetland size on surficial aquifer and base flow dynamics.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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A significant nexus: Geographically isolated wetlands influence landscape hydrology

McLaughlin

Kaplan

Cohen

2014

Water Resources Research

121

132

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Recent U.S. Supreme Court rulings have limited federal protections for geographically isolated wetlands (GIWs) except where a ''significant nexus'' to a navigable water body is demonstrated. Geographic isolation does not imply GIWs are hydrologically disconnected; indeed, wetland-groundwater interactions may yield important controls on regional hydrology. Differences in specific yield (S y ) between uplands and inundated GIWs drive differences in water level responses to precipitation and evapotranspiration, leading to frequent reversals in hydraulic gradients that cause GIWs to act as both groundwater sinks and sources. These reversals are predicted to buffer surficial aquifer dynamics and thus base flow delivery, a process we refer to as landscape hydrologic capacitance. To test this hypothesis, we connected models of soil moisture, upland water table, and wetland stage to simulate hydrology of a low-relief landscape with GIWs, and explored the influences of total wetland area, individual wetland size, climate, and soil texture on water table and base flow variation. Increasing total wetland area and decreasing individual wetland size substantially decreased water table and base flow variation (e.g., reducing base flow standard deviation by as much as 50%). GIWs also decreased the frequency of extremely high and low water tables and base flow deliveries. For the same total wetland area, landscapes with fewer (i.e., larger) wetlands exhibited markedly lower hydrologic capacitance than those with more (i.e., smaller) wetlands, highlighting the importance of small GIWs to regional hydrology. Our results suggest that GIWs buffer dynamics of the surficial aquifer and stream base flow, providing an indirect but significant nexus to the regional hydrologic system.

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Section: Model Descriptionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Climate Simulationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Climate Simulationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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A significant nexus: Geographically isolated wetlands influence landscape hydrology

McLaughlin

Kaplan

Cohen

2014

Water Resources Research

121

132

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“…Groundwater is the key factor in the processes of the water cycling; it influences the soil water dynamics (Ridolfi et al, 2008;Laio et al, 2009), plant water uptake, and consequently the surface ET process. According to our results, the impacts of groundwater table to surface ET process consist of two aspects ( Figure 10): (1) the differences of groundwater depths determine the spatial pattern and vegetation coverage (Zhu et al, 2012;Li et al, 2013) of desert riparian plants, in consequence, influence the amount of ET; and (2) the changes of groundwater table impact the ET processes by influencing plant growth and physiological activities.…”

Section: Key Controlling Mechanism On Water Cycling In Lower Reaches mentioning

confidence: 99%

Evapotranspiration and its main controlling mechanism over the desert riparian forests in the lower Tarim River Basin

Yuan

Luo

Shao

et al. 2015

Sci. China Earth Sci.

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Evapotranspiration (ET) and its controlling mechanism over the desert riparian forests in arid regions are the important scientific basis for the water resources managements of the lower reaches of the inland rivers of China. Nearly three years of continuous measurements of surface ET, soil water content at different depths and groundwater table over a typical Tamarix spp. stand and a typical Populus euphratica stand were conducted in the lower reach of the Tarim River. The ET seasonal trends in the growing season were controlled by plant phenology, and ET in non-growing season was weak. The diurnal variations of ET resulting from the comprehensive effects of all atmospheric factors were significantly related with reference ET. The spatial pattern of ET was determined by vegetation LAI, more vegetation coverage, more ET amount. Groundwater is the water source of surface ET, and the soil water in shallow layers hardly took part in the water exchange in the groundwatersoil-plant-air system. The temporal processes of ET over the Tamarix stand and the Populus stand were similar, but the water consumption of the well-grown Populus euphratica was higher than that of the well-grown Tamarix spp. Further analysis indicates that plant transpiration accounts for most of the surface ET, with soil evaporation weak and negligible; groundwater table is a crucial factor influencing ET over the desert riparian forests, groundwater influences the processes and amounts of ET by controlling the growth and spatial distribution of desert riparian forests; quantifying the water stress of desert riparian forests using groundwater table is more appropriate, rather than soil water content. Based on the understanding of ET and water movements in the groundwater-soil-plant-air system, a generalized framework expressing the water cycling and its key controlling mechanism in the lower reaches of the inland rivers of China is described, and a simple model to estimate water requirements of the desert riparian forests is presented. lower reaches of the Tarim River, water cycling, evapotranspiration, desert riparian forests, Tamarix spp., Populus euphratica Citation:Yuan G F, Luo Y, Shao M A, et al. 2015. Evapotranspiration and its main controlling mechanism over the desert riparian forests in the lower Tarim River

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Ecohydrology

Yin

Porporato

D’Odorico

et al. 2019

Encyclopedia of Water

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An interdisciplinary and fast‐growing science, ecohydrology aims at understanding the interactions among soil, water, vegetation, microbial biomass, atmosphere, and human societies. We provide a synthetic overview of these complex interactions, by reviewing the developments in ecohydrology following a stochastic modeling approach from the plot to the continental scales. We begin with the soil water balance at a point, which is primarily controlled by the pulsing and intermittent behaviors of rainfall input. It provides the mathematical basis for the analysis of plant water stress, plant biomass, and soil nutrient dynamics. We then review more general ecohydrological feedbacks, including groundwater feedbacks, land–atmosphere interactions at the continental scale, and irrigation in agroecosystem. To analyze the general behaviors of these interactions including the effects of stochastic external forcing, a “macroscopic approach” dealing with reduced order models of the main mean variables is also briefly discussed as a promising tool for future ecohydrological research.

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Ecohydrology of groundwater‐dependent ecosystems: 1. Stochastic water table dynamics

Cited by 87 publications

References 32 publications

A significant nexus: Geographically isolated wetlands influence landscape hydrology

A significant nexus: Geographically isolated wetlands influence landscape hydrology

Evapotranspiration and its main controlling mechanism over the desert riparian forests in the lower Tarim River Basin

Ecohydrology

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