Water Budget, Biological Water Use, and the Soil Hydrological Cycle across Typical Ecosystems of the Heihe River Basin
Quantification of the water budget of an arid inland river ecosystem is essential but still a challenge for the sustainable development of water resources. In situ observed data were used to analyze the monthly and annual water budgets and the soil hydrological cycle for six typical ecosystems in th...
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| Format: | Article |
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MDPI AG
2022-09-01
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| Series: | Water |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4441/14/18/2895 |
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| author | Qi Chen Yuhua Xing Dapeng Zhang Haitao Sun Pei Wang |
| author_facet | Qi Chen Yuhua Xing Dapeng Zhang Haitao Sun Pei Wang |
| author_sort | Qi Chen |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Quantification of the water budget of an arid inland river ecosystem is essential but still a challenge for the sustainable development of water resources. In situ observed data were used to analyze the monthly and annual water budgets and the soil hydrological cycle for six typical ecosystems in the Heihe River Basin (HRB). The two-source model was used to partition evapotranspiration (ET) into transpiration (T) and evaporation, after which the validated model was applied to quantitatively analyze the biological water use fraction [T/Ecosystem Water Supply (WS)] for different ecosystems. There were differences in the water budgets of the different ecosystems due to differences in climate, vegetation, soil, and external inputs. Precipitation in the HRB decreased from upstream to downstream, whereas there was a gradual increase in ET. External sources of water (e.g., natural runoff from upstream, irrigation in the middle reaches, and groundwater recharge in the lower reaches) to soil layers played an important role in regulating the water budgets of HRB ecosystems. Cropland obtained the maximum biological water use fraction (0.50), followed by <i>Populus euphratica</i> (0.49), alpine meadow (0.49), alpine swamp meadow (0.44), <i>Tamarix ramosissima</i> (0.42), and <i>Kalidium foliatum</i> (0.4). The soil water residence time (at a depth of 40 cm) varied from 14 d to 97 d (average of 60 d). The order of plant species in terms of soil water residence time was: <i>K. foliatum</i> (88 d) > <i>T. ramosissima</i> (72 d) > alpine meadow (68 d) > alpine swamp meadow (63 d) > cropland (53 d) > <i>P. euphratica</i> forest (20 d). Differences in the biological water use fraction and soil water residence time could be attributed to the characteristics of the water budget for each ecosystem. This study quantified the water budget, biological water use, and soil hydrological cycle across typical ecosystems in HRB, and can act as a reference for ecosystem management of the arid inland river basin. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-09T22:11:36Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-ac326d5610ca4716bbdef9303f3b7af9 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2073-4441 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-09T22:11:36Z |
| publishDate | 2022-09-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Water |
| spelling | doaj.art-ac326d5610ca4716bbdef9303f3b7af92023-11-23T19:31:58ZengMDPI AGWater2073-44412022-09-011418289510.3390/w14182895Water Budget, Biological Water Use, and the Soil Hydrological Cycle across Typical Ecosystems of the Heihe River BasinQi Chen0Yuhua Xing1Dapeng Zhang2Haitao Sun3Pei Wang4State Key Laboratory of Earth Surface Processes and Resource Ecology, Faculty of Geographical Science, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, ChinaState Key Laboratory of Earth Surface Processes and Resource Ecology, Faculty of Geographical Science, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, ChinaState Key Laboratory of Earth Surface Processes and Resource Ecology, Faculty of Geographical Science, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, ChinaState Key Laboratory of Earth Surface Processes and Resource Ecology, Faculty of Geographical Science, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, ChinaState Key Laboratory of Earth Surface Processes and Resource Ecology, Faculty of Geographical Science, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, ChinaQuantification of the water budget of an arid inland river ecosystem is essential but still a challenge for the sustainable development of water resources. In situ observed data were used to analyze the monthly and annual water budgets and the soil hydrological cycle for six typical ecosystems in the Heihe River Basin (HRB). The two-source model was used to partition evapotranspiration (ET) into transpiration (T) and evaporation, after which the validated model was applied to quantitatively analyze the biological water use fraction [T/Ecosystem Water Supply (WS)] for different ecosystems. There were differences in the water budgets of the different ecosystems due to differences in climate, vegetation, soil, and external inputs. Precipitation in the HRB decreased from upstream to downstream, whereas there was a gradual increase in ET. External sources of water (e.g., natural runoff from upstream, irrigation in the middle reaches, and groundwater recharge in the lower reaches) to soil layers played an important role in regulating the water budgets of HRB ecosystems. Cropland obtained the maximum biological water use fraction (0.50), followed by <i>Populus euphratica</i> (0.49), alpine meadow (0.49), alpine swamp meadow (0.44), <i>Tamarix ramosissima</i> (0.42), and <i>Kalidium foliatum</i> (0.4). The soil water residence time (at a depth of 40 cm) varied from 14 d to 97 d (average of 60 d). The order of plant species in terms of soil water residence time was: <i>K. foliatum</i> (88 d) > <i>T. ramosissima</i> (72 d) > alpine meadow (68 d) > alpine swamp meadow (63 d) > cropland (53 d) > <i>P. euphratica</i> forest (20 d). Differences in the biological water use fraction and soil water residence time could be attributed to the characteristics of the water budget for each ecosystem. This study quantified the water budget, biological water use, and soil hydrological cycle across typical ecosystems in HRB, and can act as a reference for ecosystem management of the arid inland river basin.https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4441/14/18/2895water budgetbiological water use fractionHeihe River Basinevaporation and transpirationtwo-source model |
| spellingShingle | Qi Chen Yuhua Xing Dapeng Zhang Haitao Sun Pei Wang Water Budget, Biological Water Use, and the Soil Hydrological Cycle across Typical Ecosystems of the Heihe River Basin Water water budget biological water use fraction Heihe River Basin evaporation and transpiration two-source model |
| title | Water Budget, Biological Water Use, and the Soil Hydrological Cycle across Typical Ecosystems of the Heihe River Basin |
| title_full | Water Budget, Biological Water Use, and the Soil Hydrological Cycle across Typical Ecosystems of the Heihe River Basin |
| title_fullStr | Water Budget, Biological Water Use, and the Soil Hydrological Cycle across Typical Ecosystems of the Heihe River Basin |
| title_full_unstemmed | Water Budget, Biological Water Use, and the Soil Hydrological Cycle across Typical Ecosystems of the Heihe River Basin |
| title_short | Water Budget, Biological Water Use, and the Soil Hydrological Cycle across Typical Ecosystems of the Heihe River Basin |
| title_sort | water budget biological water use and the soil hydrological cycle across typical ecosystems of the heihe river basin |
| topic | water budget biological water use fraction Heihe River Basin evaporation and transpiration two-source model |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4441/14/18/2895 |
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