The Role of Litter in Rainfall Interception and Maintenance of Superficial Soil Water Content in an Arid Rangeland in Khabr National Park in South-Eastern Iran

Sharafatmandrad, Mohsen; Mesdaghi, M; Bahremand, Abdolreza; Barani, Hossein

doi:10.1080/15324981003762422

Cited by 21 publications

(11 citation statements)

References 21 publications

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“…8a). The rainfall interceptions of forest canopy and O horizon have been widely reported in previous studies, especially in arid and semi-arid areas (Sharafatmandrad et al, 2010;Schrumpf et al, 2011). In this study, this interception function was still observed in humid forest, especially in small and low intense rainfall events.…”

Section: Soil Moisture Response To Rainfall In Forest Land Usementioning

confidence: 50%

Soil moisture response to rainfall in forestland and vegetable plot in Taihu Lake Basin, China

Zhu

Zheng

et al. 2014

Chin. Geogr. Sci.

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Soil moisture and its spatial pattern are important for understanding various hydrological, pedological, ecological and agricultural processes. In this study, data of rainfall and soil moisture contents at different depths (10 cm, 20 cm, 40 cm and 60 cm) in forestland and vegetable plot in the Taihu Lake Basin, China were monitored and analyzed for characteristics of soil moisture variation and its response to several typical rainfall events. The following results were observed. First, great temporal variation of soil moisture was observed in the surface layer than in deeper layer in vegetable plot. In contrast, in forestland, soil moisture had similar variation pattern at different depths. Second, initial soil moisture was an important factor influencing the vertical movement of soil water during rainfall events. In vegetable plot, simultaneous response of soil moisture to rainfall was observed at 10-and 20-cm depths due to fast infiltration when initial soil was relatively dry. However, traditional downward response order occurred when initial soil was relatively wet. Third, critical soil horizon interface was an active zone of soil water accumulation and lateral movement. A less permeable W-B soil horizon interface (40-cm depth) in vegetable plot can create perched water table above it and elevate the soil water content at the corresponding depth. Fourth, the land cover was an effective control factor of soil moisture during small and moderate rainfall events. In the forestland, moderate and small rainfall events had tiny influences on soil moisture due to canopy and surface O horizon interception. Fifth, preferential flow and lateral subsurface interflow were important paths of soil water movement. During large and long duration rainfall events, lateral subsurface flow and preferential flow through surface crack or soil pipe occurred, which recharged the deep soil. However, in more concentrated large storm, surface crack or soil pipe connected by soil macropores was the main contributor to the occurrence of preferential flow. Findings of this study provide a theoretical foundation for sustainable water and fertilizer management and land use planning in the Taihu Lake Basin.

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Section: Soil Moisture Response To Rainfall In Forest Land Usementioning

confidence: 50%

Soil moisture response to rainfall in forestland and vegetable plot in Taihu Lake Basin, China

Zhu

Zheng

et al. 2014

Chin. Geogr. Sci.

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“…En relación a la humedad del suelo, la tendencia registrada de mayores valores en las fajas (especialmente la de 8 m) respecto al testigo puede deberse a una reducción de la evaporación ya que la broza permite retener por un período mayor la humedad en el suelo. Efectos similares fueron reportados por Sharafatmandrad et al (2010) en ambientes áridos de Irán. Sin embargo, en estos ambientes áridos de estepa la precipitación se caracteriza por una elevada variabilidad interanual.…”

Section: Clima Y Suelosunclassified

Respuesta de la vegetación al manejo por corte en fajas en un arbustal de Mulguraea tridens en Patagonia sur

2016

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RESUMEN. En Santa Cruz, aproximadamente 2.83 millones de hectáreas conforman el matorral de mata negra, una estepa arbustiva dominada por el arbusto Mulguraea tridens, donde la ganadería ovina extensiva es la principal actividad productiva. En este trabajo se estudió el efecto de la aplicación de técnicas de manejo de corte en fajas removiendo la parte aérea de todos los arbustos. Los tratamientos evaluados fueron un arbustal sin intervenir (testigo) y fajas de corte de 4 y 8 m de ancho. Por un término de 3 años se midieron variables meteorológicas (humedad, precipitaciones, temperatura y viento), el efecto de los tratamientos sobre variables del suelo, capacidad de rebrote de los arbustos de M. tridens y aspectos relacionados al banco de semillas del suelo (BSS) como la germinación potencial y el reclutamiento de plántulas en el campo. La cobertura vegetal y productividad del pastizal fue evaluada en los años 1, 3 y 5 luego de aplicados los tratamientos. Los cortes en fajas aportaron entre 5700 y 8000 kg/ha de materia seca de broza a la superficie del suelo, lo que disminuyó su amplitud térmica entre 2 y 5 °C y aumentó su contenido de humedad entre 2.5 y 7.5% en los meses de primavera-verano. La productividad promedio del inter-coironal en el testigo fue 11.6 kg/ha de materia seca, mientras que en las fajas de corte se obtuvieron hasta 88.2 kg/ha de materia seca al quinto año de medición, posiblemente por un mejor aprovechamiento del agua del suelo ya que no se detectaron diferencias en el reclutamiento de las plántulas. No se observó un efecto significativo de los tratamientos sobre el BSS. Los arbustos mostraron capacidad de rebrotar desde las ramas, lo que brinda una mayor flexibilidad en el manejo a largo plazo y permite un esquema de rotación de los cortes en fajas.[Palabras clave: suelo, vegetación, rebrote, arbusto, banco de semillas, germinación] ABSTRACT. Response of vegetation to management by cuttings along strips in a Mulguraea tridens shrubland in southern Patagonia. In Santa Cruz province, nearly 2.83 million hectares are occupied by a shrub steppe dominated by Mulguraea tridens (locally called matorral de mata negra), where the main activity is extensive sheep farming. This paper focuses on the effects of management practices such as removal in strips of the above ground shrub layer. The treatments were the control and the cutting of 4 and 8 m wide strips. Meteorological variables (humidity, rainfall, temperature and wind), the effect of treatments on soil variables, shrub regrowth capacity and aspects related to soil seed bank (SSB), potential germination and seedling recruitment in the field were monitored for a term of three years. The vegetation cover and grassland productivity was assessed after one, three and five years of treatments application. Shrub litter from cutting strip treatments varied between 5700 and 8000 kg/ha of dry matter, resulting in a decrease in soil range temperature (2-5 °C) and an increase in soil moisture (2.5-7.5%) during spring-summer months. Short grasses and herb p...

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“…The litter layer is far smaller in mass compared to canopy crown in many water‐limited ecosystems, and therefore, the litter layer's ability to intercept rainfall is small in the overall interception estimation (Gerrits, Pfister, & Savenije, ; Li, Niu, & Xie, ; Sharafatmandrad, Mesdaghi, Bahremand, & Barani, ). Litter interception is partially controlled by properties of the litter layer such as the depth, composition, and mass of litter (Putuhena & Cordery, ), which are determined primarily by vegetation type, species composition, season, and management practices, all which exhibit complicated spatio‐temporal variations (Putuhena & Cordery, ; Sayer, ; Sharafatmandrad et al, ). In addition, the evaporation of retained water in litter is affected by below canopy climatic drivers such as air temperature, wind velocity and water vapor pressure deficit (Helvey & Patric, ; Llorens, Poch, Latron, & Gallart, ) and therefore interception loss may vary for similar litter mass under different climates.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Walsh & Voigt, ) of gross precipitation depending on the mean annual precipitation, litter mass, and leaf shape (Gerrits et al, ; Naeth, Bailey, Chanasyk, & Pluth, ; Walsh & Voigt, ). Litter interception is relatively negligible (less than 1% of precipitation) in some water‐limited regions (Sharafatmandrad et al, ) due to a smaller litter mass compared to canopy interception (Zou, Caterina, Will, Stebler, & Turton, ). However, litter interception can be substantial if a deep layer of litter builds up under the canopy, especially in semi‐arid regions where below canopy evaporative demand is high (Tsiko, Makurira, Gerrits, & Savenije, ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Monitoring litter interception of rainfall using leaf wetness sensor under controlled and field conditions

Acharya

Stebler

Zou

2016

Hydrological Processes

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Leaf litter interception of water is an integral component of the water budget for some vegetated ecosystems. However, loss of rainfall to litter receives considerably less attention than canopy interception due to lack of suitable sensors to measure changes in litter water content. In this study, a commercially available leaf wetness sensor was calibrated to the gravimetric water content of eastern redcedar (Juniperus virginiana) litter and used to estimate litter interception in a subhumid eastern redcedar woodland in north-central Oklahoma. Under controlled laboratory conditions, a strong positive correlation between the leaf wetness sensor output voltage (mV) and measured gravimetric litter water content (ϴ g ) was determined: ϴ g = (.0009 × mV 2 ) − (0.14 × mV) − 11.41 (R 2 = .94, p < .0001). This relationship was validated with field sampling and the output voltage (mV) accounted for 48% of the observed variance in the measured water content. The maximum and minimum interception storage capacity ranged between 1.16 and 12.04 and 1.12 and 9.62 mm, respectively. The maximum and minimum amount of intercepted rain was positively correlated to rainfall amount and intensity. The continuous field measurements demonstrated that eastern redcedar litter intercepted approximately 8% of the gross rainfall that fell between December 16, 2014 and May 31, 2015. Therefore, rainfall loss to litter can constitute a substantial component of the annual water budget. Long-term in situ measurement of litter interception loss is necessary to gain a better estimate of water availability for streamflow and recharge. This is critical to manage water resources in the south-central Great Plains, USA where grasslands are rapidly being transformed to woodland or woody dominated savanna. KEYWORDS gravimetric litter water content, interception storage capacity, Juniperus virginiana, leaf wetness sensor, litter interception, water budget

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The Role of Litter in Rainfall Interception and Maintenance of Superficial Soil Water Content in an Arid Rangeland in Khabr National Park in South-Eastern Iran

Cited by 21 publications

References 21 publications

Soil moisture response to rainfall in forestland and vegetable plot in Taihu Lake Basin, China

Soil moisture response to rainfall in forestland and vegetable plot in Taihu Lake Basin, China

Respuesta de la vegetación al manejo por corte en fajas en un arbustal de Mulguraea tridens en Patagonia sur

Monitoring litter interception of rainfall using leaf wetness sensor under controlled and field conditions

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