Measurement of rainfall interception by xerophytic shrubs in re-vegetated sand dunes / Mesure de l'interception de la pluie par des arbustes xérophiles sur des dunes de sable replantées

Abstract

More than 40 years of re-vegetation using mainly xerophytic shrubs Artemisia ordosica Krasch. and Caragana korshinskii Kom. at Shapotou Desert Experimental Research Station near Lanzhou, China has resulted in established dwarf-shrub and herbaceous cover on sand dunes. Precipitation, as the sole source of water replenishment in the semiarid area, plays a pertinent role in sustaining the desert ecosystem. A field study was conducted to (a) measure interception loss on shrub canopies during individual rainfall events, (b) determine the canopy storage capacity of individual plants, and (c) explore the relationship between interception and rainfall parameters. The total rainfall and its respective partitions as throughfall were determined and the interception losses in the studied ecosystem were quantified. Interception loss was shown to differ among the xerophyte taxa studied. During the growing seasons, the average shrub community interception loss is 6.9% and 11.7% of the simultaneous overall precipitation, for A. ordosica and C. korshinskii, respectively. Taking into account the observed rainfall conditions and vegetation cover characteristics, it was concluded that the interception loss was 2.7% of the total annual precipitation verified in the period for the A. ordosica community with an average cover of 30%, canopy projection area of 0.8 m₂ and canopy storage capacity of 0.75 mm. In contrast, interception loss for the C. korshinskii community was 3.8% with an average cover of 46%, canopy projection area of 3.8 m² and canopy storage capacity of 0.71 mm. For individual plants of both shrubs, the proportion of interception loss to gross rainfall decreased notably as the rainfall intensity increased between 0 and 2 mm h^?1, while it tended to remain constant at about 0.1–0.2 for A. ordosica and 0.1–0.3 for C. korshinskii when the rainfall intensity was >2 mm h^?1.     

Dependence of shrub canopy water storage on raindrop size in revegetated desert

Abstract

The aim of this study was to evaluate canopy water storage (CWS) of the co-dominant shrubs in the revegetation of sand dunes in northwest China. Our results indicated that CWS differed among the xerophyte taxa studied. The average CWS increased exponentially with decreased raindrop size. The time course of CWS in terms of leaf area indicated that Artemisia ordosica attains its peak value of 0.48 mm within 170 min. The corresponding values for Caragana korshinskii and Hedysarum scoparium were 0.38 mm and 178 min, and 0.32 mm and 161 min, respectively, implying that A. ordosica had a higher CWS than C. korshinskii and H. scoparium. Dry biomass was a desirable predictor for estimation of CWS for C. korshinskii and H. scoparium, and shrub volume for A. ordosica. Our results show that the dependence of CWS on raindrop size varied in accordance with the shrub canopy structure.

Editor Z.W. Kundzewicz     

Modeling rainfall interception loss by two xerophytic shrubs in the Loess Plateau

Rainfall interception loss plays an important role in ecohydrological processes in dryland shrub ecosystems, but its drivers still remain poorly understood. In this study, a statistical model was developed to simulate interception loss based on the mass balance measurements arising from the partitioning of rainfall in 2 dominant xerophytic shrub (Hippophae rhamnoides and Spiraea pubescens) communities in the Loess Plateau. We measured throughfall and stemflow in the field under natural rainfall, calculated the canopy storage capacity in the laboratory, and identified key factors controlling these components for the 2 shrubs. We quantified and scaled up the stemflow and the canopy storage capacity measurements from the branches and/or leaves to stand level. The average interception loss, throughfall, and stemflow fluxes account for 24.9%, 72.2%, and 2.9% of the gross rainfall for H. rhamnoides, and 19.2%, 70.7%, and 10.1% for S. pubescens, respectively. Throughfall increased with increasing rainfall for both shrubs; however, it was only correlated with the leaf area index for S. pubescens. For stemflow measured from individual branches, we found that the rainfall amount and basal diameter are the best predictors for H. rhamnoides, whereas rainfall amount and branch biomass appear to be the best predictors for S. pubescens. At the stand level, stemflow production is affected by the rainfall amount for H. rhamnoides, and it is affected by both the rainfall amount and the leaf area index for S. pubescens. The canopy storage capacity of H. rhamnoides (1.07–1.28 mm) was larger than S. pubescens (0.88–1.07 mm), and it is mainly determined by the branches and stems of H. rhamnoides and the leaves of S. pubescens. The differences in interception loss between the 2 shrub stands are mainly attributed to different canopy structures that induced differences in stemflow production and canopy storage. We evaluated the effects of canopy structure on rainfall interception loss, and our developed model provides a better understanding of the effects of the canopy structure on the water cycles in dryland shrub ecosystems.     

Winter rainfall interception by two mature open‐grown trees in Davis,California

A rainfall interception measuring system was developed and tested for open‐grown trees. The system includes direct measurements of gross precipitation, throughfall and stemflow, as well as continuous collection of micrometeorological data. The data were sampled every second and collected at 30‐s time steps using pressure transducers monitoring water depth in collection containers coupled to Campbell CR10 dataloggers. The system was tested on a 9‐year‐old broadleaf deciduous tree (pear, Pyrus calleryana ‘Bradford’) and an 8‐year‐old broadleaf evergreen tree (cork oak, Quercus suber) representing trees having divergent canopy distributions of foliage and stems. Partitioning of gross precipitation into throughfall, stemflow and canopy interception is presented for these two mature open‐grown trees during the 1996–1998 rainy seasons. Interception losses accounted for about 15% of gross precipitation for the pear tree and 27% for the oak tree. The fraction of gross precipitation reaching the ground included 8% by stemflow and 77% by throughfall for the pear tree, as compared with 15% and 58%, respectively, for the oak tree. The analysis of temporal patterns in interception indicates that it was greatest at the beginning of each rainfall event. Rainfall frequency is more significant than rainfall rate and duration in determining interception losses. Both stemflow and throughfall varied with rainfall intensity and wind speed. Increasing precipitation rates and wind speed increased stemflow but reduced throughfall. Analysis of rainfall interception processes at different time‐scales indicates that canopy interception varied from 100% at the beginning of the rain event to about 3% at the maximum rain intensity for the oak tree. These values reflected the canopy surface water storage changes during the rain event. The winter domain precipitation at our study site in the Central Valley of California limited our opportunities to collect interception data during non‐winter seasons. This precipitation pattern makes the results more specific to the Mediterranean climate region. Copyright © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Impact of interacting bark structure and rainfall conditions on stemflow variability in a temperate beech-oak forest,central Germany

ABSTRACT

Trees concentrate rainfall to near-stem soils via stemflow. When canopy structures are organized appropriately, stemflow can even induce preferential flow through soils, transporting nutrients to biogeochemically active areas. Bark structure significantly affects stemflow, yet bark-stemflow studies are primarily qualitative. We used a LaserBark to compute bark microrelief (MR), ridge-to-furrow amplitude (R) and slope (S) metrics per American Society of Mechanical Engineering standards (ASME-B46.1–2009) for two morphologically contrasting species (Fagus sylvatica L. (European beech), Quercus robur L. (pendunculate oak)) under storm conditions with strong bark water storage capacity (BWSC) influence in central Germany. Smaller R and S for F. sylvatica significantly lowered BWSC, which strongly and inversely correlated to maximum funnelling ratios and permitted stemflow generation at lower rain magnitudes. Larger R and S values in Q. robur reduced funnelling, diminishing stemflow drainage for larger storms. Quercus robur funnelling and stemflow was more reliant on intermediate rain intensities and intermittency to maintain bark channel-dependent drainage pathways. Shelter provided by Q. robur’s ridged bark also appears to protect entrained water, lengthening mean intrastorm dry periods necessary to affect stemflow. Storm conditions where BWSC plays a major role in stemflow accounted for much of 2013’s rainfall at the nearest meteorological station (Wulferstedt).

Editor M.C. Acreman; Associate editor not assigned     

Rainfall partitioning into throughfall,stemflow, and interception within a single beech (Fagus sylvatica L.) canopy: influence of foliation,rain event characteristics,and meteorology

While the hydrological balance of forest ecosystems has often been studied at the annual level, quantitative studies on the factors determining rainfall partitioning of individual rain events are less frequently reported. Therefore, the effect of the seasonal variation in canopy cover on rainfall partitioning was studied for a mature deciduous beech (Fagus sylvatica L.) tree over a 2‐year period. At the annual level, throughfall amounted to 71% of precipitation, stemflow 8%, and interception 21%. Rainfall partitioning at the event level depended strongly on the amount of rainfall and differed significantly (p < 0·001) between the leafed and the leafless period of the year. Therefore, water fluxes of individual events were described using a multiple regression analysis (r_a² > 0·85, n = 205) with foliation, rainfall characteristics and meteorological variables as predictor variables. For a given amount of rainfall, foliation significantly increased interception and decreased throughfall and stemflow amounts. In addition, rainfall duration, maximum rainfall rate, vapour pressure deficit, and wind speed significantly affected rainfall partitioning at the event level. Increasing maximum hourly rainfall rate increased throughfall and decreased stemflow generation, while higher hourly vapour pressure deficit decreased event throughfall and stemflow amounts. Wind speed decreased throughfall in the growing period only. Since foliation and the event rainfall amount largely determined interception loss, the observed net water input under the deciduous canopy was sensitive to the temporal distribution of rainfall. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Stemflow and throughfall in a tropical dry forest

The rainfall received by a small plot of tropical deciduous forest on sand dunes in Veracruz, Mexico, was partitioned into stemflow and throughfall components to determine whether funnelling by stemflow could reduce soil leaching by transmitting large volumes of water through vertical soil pathways beneath each stem. Although soil infiltration capacities were high, only a very small proportion of incoming rainfall was funnelled by canopy stems. This is attributed to the widely-branched morphology of mature trees. Smaller trees and shrubs were more effective funnellers of rainfall, and a crude estimate of the magnitude of stemflow in the understorey stratum in one rain event suggested a contribution approximately ten times that of canopy stemflow. However, even if augmented by the understorey stratum in this way, total stemflow is unlikely to have exceeded 10 per cent of gross precipitation, implying that it does not represent an important leaching-avoidance mechanism in this forest.     

Long-term variations of rainfall interception in different growth stages of Chinese fir plantations

Abstract

The dynamic properties of rainfall interception were investigated at three growth stages in Chinese fir plantations. The results showed that the annual interception ratio was significantly higher in mature stands than in young stands. For a storm event, interception rainfall amount increased with increasing rainfall, but interception ratio decreased. In contrast to dry season conditions, the interception amount was high in the wet seasons, while the interception ratio was low. The rates of change in interception ratio were extremely rapid in small rainfall events. There was little stemflow in Chinese fir forests due to the pyramid-shaped crowns and thick rough bark of the trees. The power model was suitable to describe the interception process for an individual rainfall event for stands of any age. Our results indicate that the interception process varied for stands of different ages in Chinese fir plantations due to contrasting canopy structures.     

Spatial variability of throughfall and stemflow in an exotic pine plantation of subtropical coastal Australia

Large‐scale exotic pine plantations have been developed for timber production in subtropical Australia. Few studies investigate the spatial variability of both throughfall and stemflow in such managed pine plantations despite their acknowledged effects on the heterogeneity of hydrological and biochemical processes of forested ecosystems. To examine the spatial variability of rainfall under a 12‐year‐old pine plantation in a subtropical coastal area of Australia, we observed gross rainfall, throughfall and stemflow over a 1‐year period. Our results show that the spatial variability of gross rainfall within a 50 m × 50 m plot is minimal. Throughfall is significantly different among three tree zones (midway between rows, west and east side of trunks), particularly for rainfall <50 mm, with the highest throughfall on the east side of the tree trunks (sum = 85% of gross rainfall) and the lowest in the midway between tree rows (sum = 68% of gross rainfall). These spatial patterns persist among 84% of recorded rainfall events. Spatial variability and time stability of throughfall are better explained by canopy interception of the inclined rainfall resulting from the prevailing easterly wind direction throughout the experiment. The annual stemflow is different among individual sample trees, which is mainly ascribed to the difference in tree size (e.g. projected canopy area and stem diameter). The outcomes of this study would help future investigators better design appropriate sampling strategies in these pine plantations under similar climate conditions. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Effects of surface characteristics on infiltration patterns in an arid shrub desert

Precipitation is often the sole source of water replenishment in arid and semi‐arid areas and, thus, plays a pertinent role in sustaining desert ecosystems. Revegetation over 40 years using mainly Artemisia ordosica and Caragana korshinskii at Shapotou Desert Experimental Research Station near Lanzhou, China, has established a dwarf‐shrub and microbiotic soil crust cover on the stabilized sand dunes. The redistribution of infiltrated moisture through percolation, root extraction, and evapotranspiration pathways was investigated. Three sets of time‐domain reflectometry (TDR) probes were inserted horizontally at 5, 10, 15, 20, 30 and 40 cm depths below the ground surface in a soil pit. The three sets of TDR probes were installed in dwarf‐shrub sites of A. ordosica and C. korshinskii community with and without a microbiotic soil crust cover, and an additional set was placed in a bare sand dune area that had neither vegetation nor a microbiotic soil crust present. Volumetric soil moisture content was recorded at hourly intervals and used in the assessment of infiltration for the different surface covers. Infiltration varied greatly, from 7·5 cm to more than 45 cm, depending upon rainfall quantity and soil surface conditions. In the shrub community area without microbiotic soil crust cover, infiltration increased due to preferential flow associated with root tunnels. The microbiotic soil crust cover had a significant negative influence on the infiltration for small rainfall events (～10 mm), restricting the infiltration depth to less than 20 cm and increasing soil moisture content just beneath the soil profile of 10 cm, whereas it was not as strong or clear for larger rainfall events (～60 mm). For small rainfall events, the wetting front depth for the three kinds of surface cover was as follows: shrub community without microbiotic soil crust > bare area > shrub community with microbiotic soil crust. In contrast, for large rainfall events, infiltration was similar in shrub communities with and without microbiotic soil crust cover, but significantly higher than measured in the bare area. Soil water extraction by roots associated with evapotranspiration restricted the wetting front penetration after 1 to 3 h of rainfall. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Importance of rainfall partitioning in a northern mixed forest canopy for soil water isotopic signatures in ecohydrological studies

The forest canopy can play a significant role in modifying the amount and isotopic composition of water during its passage throughout the near-surface critical zone. Here, partitioning of gross rainfall into interception, throughfall, and stemflow and its implications for the amount and isotopic composition of soil water was studied for red oak, eastern white pine, and eastern hemlock trees in a northern hardwood-conifer forest in south central Ontario, Canada. Stemflow production was greatest for red oak as a result of its upward-projecting branches and least for eastern white pine due to its horizontal branches and rougher bark. These stemflow contributions to the near-bole soil surface failed to produce consistently wetter soils relative to distal locations from the bole for all tree species. There was also no consistent evidence of isotopic enrichment of throughfall and stemflow relative to gross rainfall or of stemflow relative to throughfall for red oak or eastern hemlock. However, there was isotopic enrichment of both throughfall and stemflow for eastern white pine with increasing maximum atmospheric vapour pressure deficit, which may reflect the potential for evaporative fractionation as a result of retention and detention of water moving through the canopy by the rougher bark of this species. Dry soil conditions limited sampling of mobile soil water during the study, and there was no consistent evidence that either throughfall or stemflow fluxes controlled temporal changes in the isotopic signature of soil water beneath the tree. Thus, the potential for throughfall and stemflow fluxes in northern hardwood-conifer forests to modify the isotopic composition of water taken up by the tree via transpiration remains an open question.     

Disposition of rainwater under creosotebush

In desert shrubland ecosystems water and nutrients are concentrated beneath shrub canopies in ‘resource islands’. Rain falling on to these islands reaches the ground as either stemflow or throughfall and then either infiltrates into the soil or runs off as overland flow. This study investigates the partitioning of rainwater between stemflow and throughfall in the first instance and between infiltration and runoff in the second. Two series of 40 rainfall simulation experiments were performed on 16 creosotebush shrubs in the Jornada Basin, New Mexico. The first series of experiments was designed to measure the surface runoff and was performed with each shrub in its growth position. The second series was designed to measure stemflow reaching the shrub base and was conducted with the shrub suspended above the ground. The experimental data show that once equilibrium is achieved, 16% of the rainfall intercepted by the canopy or 6·7% of the rain falling inside the shrub area (i.e. the area inside the shrub's circumscribing ellipse) is funnelled to the shrub base as stemflow. This redistribution of the rainfall by stemflow is a function of the ratio of canopy area (i.e. the area covered by the shrub canopy) to collar area (i.e. a circular area centred on the shrub base), with stemflow rate being positively correlated and throughfall rate being negatively correlated with this ratio. The surface runoff rate expressed as a proportion of the rate at which rainwater arrives at a point (i.e. stemflow rate plus throughfall rate) is the runoff coefficient. A multiple regression reveals that 75% of the variance in the runoff coefficient can be explained by three independent variables: the rainfall rate, the ratio of the canopy area to the collar area, and the presence or absence of subcanopy vegetation. Although the last variable is a dummy variable, it accounts for 66·4% of the variance in the runoff coefficient. This suggests that the density and extent of the subcanopy vegetation is the single most important control of the partitioning of rainwater between runoff and infiltration beneath creosotebush. Although these findings pertain to creosotebush, similar findings might be expected for other desert shrubs that generate significant stemflow and have subcanopy vegetation. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

MID-WINTER STEMFLOW DRAINAGE FROM BIGTOOTH ASPEN (POPULUS GRANDIDENTATA MICHX.) IN CENTRAL MASSACHUSETTS

Under winter conditions, stemflow drainage in forested ecosystems is often assumed to be a negligible component of the hydrological cycle. This paper reports on mid-winter stemflow drainage from the broadleaved deciduous tree species Populus grandidentata. Stemflow volumes from this species at air temperatures of < 0°C were found to be comparable to rainfall-generated stemflow during summer. Over the three-month period January–March 1993, stemflow ranged from 5.4 to 9.9% of the incident gross precipitation. Expressed as depth equivalents per unit trunk basal area, these stemflow inputs ranged from 1.8 to 4.9 m. These concentrated mid-winter inputs of liquid water to the bases of canopy trees were attributable to: (1) snow interception by the leafless woody frame of each tree; (2) snow retention by glazed ice precipitation associated with the snowfall event; (3) increased temperature at the bark/snow interface caused by the low albedo of the bark tissue; and (4) convergence of snowmelt drainage from steeply inclined upthrust primary branches. The hydrological and ecological significance of liquid water inputs to the forest floor under sub-zero conditions are discussed. © 1997 by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.     

Water balance change for a re-vegetated xerophyte shrub area/Changement du bilan hydrique d’une zone replantée d’arbustes xérophiles

Abstract

Abstract Water balances for a re-vegetated xerophyte shrub (Caragana korshinskii) area were compared to that of a bare surface area by using auto-weighing type lysimeters during the 1990–1995 growing seasons at the southeast Tengger Desert, Shapotou, China. The six-year experiment displayed how major daily water balance components might vary for a bare and a re-vegetated sand dune area. Evapotranspiration from the C. korshinskii lysimeter represented a major part of the water balance. The average annual ET/P ratios varied between 69 and 142%. No seepage was observed for the vegetated lysimeter. For the bare lysimeter, on the other hand, 48 mm or 27% of observed rainfall per year occurred as seepage. These results suggest that re-vegetating large sandy areas with xerophytic shrubs could reduce soil water storage by transpiration. Also, the experimental results indicate that re-vegetating large sandy areas could significantly change groundwater recharge conditions. However, from a viewpoint of desert ecosystem reconstruction, it appears that natural rainfall can sustain xerophytic shrubs such as C. korshinskii which would reduce erosion loss of sand. However, re-vegetation has to be balanced with recharge/groundwater needs of local populations.     

Characteristics of stemflow for tall stewartia (Stewartia monadelpha) growing on a hillslope

The characteristics of stemflow were observed in a tall stewartia (Stewartia monadelpha) deciduous forest on a hillslope in central Japan, revealing new findings for a previously unreported type of deciduous forest. Using 2-year observations of 250 rainfall events, we analyzed seasonal and spatial variations in stemflow for several trees, and applied additional data sets of throughfall and plant area index (PAI) to produce a rough estimate of seasonal variations in rainfall redistribution processes and canopy architecture for a single tree. Compared to previous findings for other deciduous tree species, the ratios of throughfall, stemflow, and interception to open-area rainfall obviously varied with PAI changes for tall stewartia. Meteorological conditions of rainfall amount, rainfall intensity, wind speed, and wind direction had little effect on stemflow generation, which was mainly affected by variation in canopy architecture. Three novel characteristics of stemflow were identified for several tall stewartia trees. First, the yearly stemflow ratio at the forest-stand level for tall stewartia (12%) was high compared to previous findings on beech and oak stands, indicating tall stewartia has considerably high potential to generate a great amount of stemflow. Second, stemflow tended to be 1.3–2.0 times greater in the leafed period than in the leafless period. Third, the amount of stemflow was 12–132 times greater on the downslope side of the stem than on the upslope side. It likely caused by the uneven area between the upslope and downslope sides of the canopy and by asymmetrical stemflow pathways between the upslope and downslope sides of the trunk due to downslope tilting of the tree trunk.     

Seasonal and annual throughfall and stemflow in Andean temperate rainforests

The partitioning of gross rainfall into throughfall, stemflow, and interception loss and their relationships with forest structure was studied for a period of four years (October 2002–September 2006) and two years (October 2005–September 2007) in seven experimental catchments of temperate rainforest ecosystems located in the Andes of south‐central Chile (39°37′S, 600–925 m a.s.l.). The amount of throughfall, stemflow, and interception loss was correlated with forest structure characteristics such as basal area, canopy cover, mean quadratic diameter (MQD), and tree species characteristics in evergreen and deciduous forests. Annual rainfall ranged from 4061 to 5308 mm at 815 m a.s.l. and from 3453 to 4660 mm at 714 m a.s.l. Throughfall ranged from 64 to 89% of gross rainfall. Stemflow contributed 0·3–3·4% of net precipitation. Interception losses ranged from 11 to 36% of gross rainfall and depended on the amount of rainfall and characteristics as well as on forest structure, particularly the MQD. For evergreen forests, strong correlations were found between stemflow per tree and tree characteristics such as diameter at breast height (R² = 0·92, P < 0·01) and crown projection area (R² = 0·65, P < 0·01). Stemflow per tree was also significantly correlated with epiphyte cover of trunks in the old‐growth evergreen forests (R² = 0·29, P < 0·05). The difference in the proportion of throughfall and interception loss among stands was significant only during winter. The reported relationships between rainfall partitioning and forest structure and composition provide valuable information for management practices, which aimed at producing other ecosystem services in addition to timber in native rainforests of southern Chile. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Rainfall partitioning through a mixed cedar swamp and associated C and N fluxes in Southern Ontario,Canada

Partitioning of rainfall through a forest canopy into throughfall, stemflow, and canopy interception is a critical process in the water cycle, and the contact of precipitation with vegetated surfaces leads to increased delivery of solutes to the forest floor. This study investigates the rainfall partitioning over a growing season through a temperate, riparian, mixed coniferous‐deciduous cedar swamp, an ecosystem not well studied with respect to this process. Seasonal throughfall, stemflow, and interception were 69.2%, 1.5%, and 29.3% of recorded above‐canopy precipitation, respectively. Event throughfall ranged from a low of 31.5 ± 6.8% for a small 0.8‐mm event to a high of 82.9 ± 2.4% for a large 42.7‐mm event. Rain fluxes of at least 8 mm were needed to generate stemflow from all instrumented trees. Most trees had funnelling ratios <1.0, with an exponential decrease in funnelling ratio with increasing tree size. Despite this, stand‐scale funnelling ratios averaged 2.81 ± 1.73, indicating equivalent depth of water delivered across the swamp floor by stemflow was greater than incident precipitation. Throughfall dissolved organic carbon (DOC) and total dissolved nitrogen (TDN) averaged 26.60 ± 2.96 and 2.02 ± 0.16 mg L^?1, respectively, which were ~11 and three times above‐canopy rain levels. Stemflow DOC averaged 73.33 ± 7.43 mg L^?1, 35 times higher than precipitation, and TDN was 4.45 ± 0.56 mg L^?1, 7.5 times higher than rain. Stemflow DOC concentration was highest from Populus balsamifera and TDN greatest from Thuja occidentalis trees. Although total below‐canopy flux of TDN increased with increasing event size, DOC flux was greatest for events 20–30 mm, suggesting a canopy storage threshold of DOC was readily diluted. In addition to documenting rainfall partitioning in a novel ecosystem, this study demonstrates the excess carbon and nitrogen delivered to riparian swamps, suggesting the assimilative capacity of these zones may be underestimated.     

Hydrochemical characteristics of throughfall and stemflow in a Moso‐bamboo (Phyllostachys pubescens) forest

To investigate the impacts of the invasion by bamboo on fluxes of nutrients and pollutants, the nutrient/pollutant fluxes and canopy interactions, including neutralization of acidity, leaching and uptake of nitrogen (N), were characterized in conjunction with rainfall partitioning in a Moso‐bamboo (Phyllostachys pubescens) forest. Measurements of precipitation volume, pH, major ions, and silicate (SiO₂) in rainfall, throughfall and stemflow were collected weekly in a Moso‐bamboo forest located in Munakata City, Western Japan for 1 year. Results showed that rainfall partitioning into stemflow was larger than that for other types of forest, which may be due to the properties of Moso‐bamboo forest structure, such as a straight and smooth culm. Inorganic N (NO₃⁻ + NH₄⁺) and S (SO₄²⁻) fluxes of throughfall and stemflow were approximately 1·6 and 1·3 times higher than that of rainfall, respectively. Contribution of stemflow flux to inorganic N and S fluxes to the forest floor was high. This could be due to lower uptake of inorganic N through culm and a higher rainfall partitioning into stemflow than that for other types of forest. The Moso‐bamboo canopy neutralized rainfall acidity, reducing the fluxes of potentially acidifying compounds via throughfall and stemflow. Canopy leaching of K⁺ was distinctly higher than that of Mg²⁺ and Ca²⁺ and could be related to the high mobility of K⁺ in plant tissues. Cl⁻ and SiO₂ were readily leached as for K⁺. The impact of the invasion by bamboo on nutrient cycling was discussed. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Understory and small trees contribute importantly to stemflow of a lower montane cloud forest

Stemflow (Sf) measurements in tropical rain and montane forests dominated by large trees rarely include the understory and small trees. In this study, contributions of lower (1‐ to 2‐m height) and upper (>2‐m height and <5‐cm diameter at breast height [DBH]) woody understory, small trees (5 < DBH < 10 cm), and canopy trees (>10‐cm DBH) to Sf per unit ground area (Sf_a) of a Mexican lower montane cloud forest were quantified for 32 days with rainfall (P) during the 2014 wet season. Rainfall, stemflow yield (Sf_y), vegetation height, density, and basal area were measured. Subsequently, stemflow funneling ratios (SFRs) were calculated, and three common methods to scale up Sf_y from individual trees to the stand level (tree‐Sf_y correlation, P‐Sf_y correlation, and mean‐Sf_y extrapolation) were used to calculate Sf_a. Understory woody plants, small trees, and upper canopy trees represented 96%, 2%, and 2%, respectively, of the total density. Upper canopy trees had the lowest SFRs (1.6 ± 0.5 Standard Error (SE) on average), although the lower understory had the highest (36.1 ± 6.4). Small trees and upper understory presented similar SFRs (22.9 ± 5.4 and 20.2 ± 3.9, respectively). Different Sf scaling methods generally yielded similar results. Overall Sf_a during the study period was 22.7 mm (4.5% of rainfall), to which the understory contributed 70.1% (15.9 mm), small trees 10.6% (2.4 mm), and upper canopy trees 19.3% (4.4 mm). Our results strongly suggest that for humid tropical forests with dense understory of woody plants and small trees, Sf of these groups should be measured to avoid an underestimation of overall Sf at the stand level.     

Influence of species and rain event characteristics on stemflow volume in a temperate mixed oak–beech stand

This study aimed at analysing the effects of biological and meteorological factors on stemflow generation in a temperate mixed oak (Quercus petraea Liebl.) and beech (Fagus sylvatica L.) stand. A statistical model was developed to predict single‐event individual stemflow volume from trunk circumference and rainfall depth allowing mechanistic stemflow parameters to be deduced from the model, namely stemflow rates (SF_rate), storage of water on tree organs (S_t) and rainfall thresholds for stemflow (RF_min). SF_rate and S_t increased with increasing trunk circumference while RF_min was not significantly influenced by tree size. RF_min and, for a given tree size, S_t were higher for oak than for beech, and inversely for SF_rate. For each species, RF_min was higher for the leaved season than for the leafless period, while the opposite was found for SF_rate, and S_t was not significantly affected by the season. Increasing wind speed during rain increased SF_rate, lowered RF_min and did not influence S_t. In contrast, S_t and RF_min tended, respectively, to decrease and to increase with increasing values of the ratio between the cumulated potential evaporation during the dry period preceding the rain event and the volume of the preceding rainfall (Eva p_ADP/R_previous). Stemflow volume, which results from the combined effects of the previous parameters, was higher for beech than for oak and also higher during the leafless period than during the leaved period; these differences were large for the smallest events but decreased rapidly as rainfall depth increased. In addition, an enhancing and a depressing effect on stemflow volume were shown for the average wind speed during rain and for the ratio Eva p_ADP/R_previous, respectively. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.