Dryland Ecohydrology

By combining the analysis of biotic and abiotic components of terrestrial ecosystems, this volume provides a synthesis of material on arid and semiarid landscapes, which is currently scattered in a number of books and journal articles. The focus on water-limited ecosystems is motivated by their high sensitivity to daily, seasonal, and decadal perturbations in water availability, and by the ecologic, climatic, and economic significance of most of the world's drylands.
Conceived as a tool for scientists working in the area of the earth and environmental sciences, this book presents the basic principles of eco-hydrology as well as a broad spectrum of topics and advances in this research field. The chapters have been contributed by authors with different expertise, who work in several arid areas around the world. They describe the various interactions among the biological and physical dynamics in dryland ecosystems, starting from basic processes in the soil-vegetation-climate system, to landscape-scale hydrologic and geomorphic processes, ecohydrologic controls on soil nutrient dynamics, and multiscale analyses of disturbances and patterns. Ecohydrology emerges as a new field of research aiming at furthering our understanding of the earth system through the study of the interactions between the water cycle and vegetation. By combining the analysis of biotic and abiotic components of terrestrial ecosystems, this volume provides a synthesis of material on arid and semiarid landscapes, which is currently spread in a number of books and journal articles. The focus on water-limited ecosystems is motivated by their high sensitivity to daily, seasonal, and decadal perturbations in water availability, and by the ecologic, climatic, and economic significance of most of the drylands around the world.
Conceived as a tool for scientists working in the area of the earth and environmental sciences, this book presents the basic principles of eco-hydrology as well as a broad spectrum of topics and advances in this research field. The chapters collected in this book have been contributed by authors with different expertise, who work in several arid areas around the World. They describe the various interactions among the biological and physical dynamics in dryland ecosystems, starting from basic processes in the soil-vegetation-climate system, to landscape-scale hydrologic and geomorphic processes, ecohydrologic controls on soil nutrient dynamics, and multiscale analyses of disturbances and patterns.

Title is also available as part of a set: Dryland Ecohydrology ()

Preface. 1. Ecohydrology of Arid and Semiarid Ecosystems: An Introduction
Paolo D'Odorico and Amilcare Porporato
Part I: Fundamental Processes And Interactions In The Soil-Climate-Vegetation System
2. Soil Physical Properties, Processes, and Associated Root-Soil Interactions
Jan W Hopmans
3. Soil Moisture Dynamics in Water-Limited Ecosystems
Paolo D'Odorico and Amilcare Porporato
4. Ecophysiology of Plants in Dry Environments
Leonardo Lombardini
5. Hydrologic Controls on Water Vapor and Carbon Fluxes in Semiarid Regions
John D. Albertson, ChristopherA. Williams, Todd M Scanlon, and Nicola Montaldo
6. Interactions and Feedbacks between Climate and Dryland Vegetations
Yongkang Xue
Part II: Hydrogeomorphology Of Arid And Semiarid Landscapes
7. Controls on Patterns of Soil Moisture in Arid and Semiarid Systems
Rodger Grayson, Andrew W. Western, Durga D. Kandel, JusUn F. Costelloe, and Davidi. Wilson
8. The History and Evolution of Desert Hydrology and Landforms: The Role of Climate Change
Andrew S. Goudie
9. Hydroclimatology of Wind Erosion in Arid and Semiarid Environments
Wim M. Cornelis
10. Hydrological and Geomorphological Significance of Riparian Vegetation in Drylands
Carlo Camporeale, Paolo Perona, and Luca Ridolfi
Part III: Ecohydrologic Controls On Nutrient Cycling
11. Modeling of Carbon and Nitrogen Cycling in Arid and Semiarid Ecosystems
Stafano Manzoni, Paolo D'Odorico, and Amilcare Porporato
12. Interactions of Water and Nitrogen on Primary Productivity across Spatial and
Temporal Scales in Grassland and Shrubland Ecosystems
Howard E. Epstein, Jose M. Paruelo, Gervasio Pineiro, Ingrid C. Burke, William K. Lauenroth, and John E. Barrett
13. Interactions between Water Availability and Nutrient Cycling in Dry Tropical Forests
Larissa Read and Deborah Lawrence
14. Biogenic Emissions of Nitric Oxide and Nitrous Oxide from Arid andSemiarid Land
Franz X. Meixner and Wen X. Yang
Part IV: Disturbances And Patterns In Arid And Semiarid Ecosystems
15. Pattern and Process in Savanna Ecosystems
Kelly K Caylor and Herman H. Shugart
16. Fire Regimes in Dryland Landscapes
Christelle Hely and SamuelAlleaume
17. Termites as Mediators of the Water Economy of Arid Savanna Ecosystems
J. Scott Turner
18. Understanding Global Desertification: Biophysical and Socio-Economic Dimensions of Hydrology
Fernando T. Maestre, James F. Reynolds, Elisabeth Huber-Sannwald, Jeff Herrick, and Mark Stafford Smith
Contributors
Index