Woody encroachment and its consequences on hydrological processes in the savannah.

ABSTRACT: Woody encroachment due to changes in climate or in the disturbance regimes (fire and herbivory) has been observed throughout the savannah biome over the last century with ecological, hydrological and socioeconomic consequences. We assessed changes in tree density and basal area and estimated changes in rain interception by the canopies across a 5-year period over a biomass gradient in Cerrado vegetation protected from fire. We modelled throughfall, stemflow and net rainfall on the basis of tree basal area (TBA). Tree density increased by an average annual rate of 6.7%, basal area at 5.7% and rain interception by the canopies at 0.6% of the gross rainfall. Independent of the vegetation structure, we found a robust relationship of 0.9% less rainfall reaching the ground as TBA increases by 1

SUBMITTER: Honda EA 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4978871 | biostudies-literature | 2016 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature