Impacts of precipitation variability on plant species and community water stress in a temperate deciduous forest in the central US
Abstract
Variations in precipitation regimes can shift ecosystem structure and function by altering frequency, severity and timing of plant water stress. There is a need for predictively understanding impacts of precipitation regimes on plant water stress in relation to species water use strategies. Here we first formulated two complementary, physiologically-linked measures of precipitation variability (PV) - Precipitation Variability Index (PVI) and Average Recurrence Interval of Effective Precipitation (ARIEP). We then used nine-year continuous measurements of Predawn Leaf Water Potential Integral (PLWPI) in a central US forest to relate PVI and ARIEP to actual plant water availability and comparative water stress responses of six species with different capacities to regulate their internal water status. We found that PVI and ARIEP explained nearly all inter-annual variations in PLWPI for all species as well as for the community scaled from species measurements. The six species investigated showed differential sensitivities to variations in precipitation regimes. Their sensitivities were reflected more in the responses to PVI and ARIEP than to the mean precipitation rate. Further, they exhibited tradeoffs between responses to low and high PV. Finally, PVI and ARIEP were closely correlated with temporal integrals of positive temperature anomalies and vapor pressure deficit. We suggest thatmore »
- Authors:
-
- Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States)
- Univ. of Missouri, Columbia, MO (United States)
- Univ. of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX (United States)
- Publication Date:
- Research Org.:
- Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States)
- Sponsoring Org.:
- USDOE Office of Science (SC)
- OSTI Identifier:
- 1265922
- Alternate Identifier(s):
- OSTI ID: 1397577
- Grant/Contract Number:
- AC05-00OR22725; FG02-03ER63683
- Resource Type:
- Accepted Manuscript
- Journal Name:
- Agricultural and Forest Meteorology
- Additional Journal Information:
- Journal Volume: 217; Journal ID: ISSN 0168-1923
- Publisher:
- Elsevier
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
- Subject:
- 54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES; precipitation variability index; average recurrence interval; effective precipitation; predawn leaf water potential; physiological drought
Citation Formats
Gu, Lianhong, Pallardy, Stephen G., Hosman, Kevin P., and Sun, Ying. Impacts of precipitation variability on plant species and community water stress in a temperate deciduous forest in the central US. United States: N. p., 2015.
Web. doi:10.1016/j.agrformet.2015.11.014.
Gu, Lianhong, Pallardy, Stephen G., Hosman, Kevin P., & Sun, Ying. Impacts of precipitation variability on plant species and community water stress in a temperate deciduous forest in the central US. United States. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agrformet.2015.11.014
Gu, Lianhong, Pallardy, Stephen G., Hosman, Kevin P., and Sun, Ying. Fri .
"Impacts of precipitation variability on plant species and community water stress in a temperate deciduous forest in the central US". United States. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agrformet.2015.11.014. https://www.osti.gov/servlets/purl/1265922.
@article{osti_1265922,
title = {Impacts of precipitation variability on plant species and community water stress in a temperate deciduous forest in the central US},
author = {Gu, Lianhong and Pallardy, Stephen G. and Hosman, Kevin P. and Sun, Ying},
abstractNote = {Variations in precipitation regimes can shift ecosystem structure and function by altering frequency, severity and timing of plant water stress. There is a need for predictively understanding impacts of precipitation regimes on plant water stress in relation to species water use strategies. Here we first formulated two complementary, physiologically-linked measures of precipitation variability (PV) - Precipitation Variability Index (PVI) and Average Recurrence Interval of Effective Precipitation (ARIEP). We then used nine-year continuous measurements of Predawn Leaf Water Potential Integral (PLWPI) in a central US forest to relate PVI and ARIEP to actual plant water availability and comparative water stress responses of six species with different capacities to regulate their internal water status. We found that PVI and ARIEP explained nearly all inter-annual variations in PLWPI for all species as well as for the community scaled from species measurements. The six species investigated showed differential sensitivities to variations in precipitation regimes. Their sensitivities were reflected more in the responses to PVI and ARIEP than to the mean precipitation rate. Further, they exhibited tradeoffs between responses to low and high PV. Finally, PVI and ARIEP were closely correlated with temporal integrals of positive temperature anomalies and vapor pressure deficit. We suggest that the comparative responses of plant species to PV are part of species-specific water use strategies in a plant community facing the uncertainty of fluctuating precipitation regimes. In conclusion, PVI and ARIEP should be adopted as key indices to quantify physiological drought and the ecological impacts of precipitation regimes in a changing climate.},
doi = {10.1016/j.agrformet.2015.11.014},
journal = {Agricultural and Forest Meteorology},
number = ,
volume = 217,
place = {United States},
year = {Fri Dec 11 00:00:00 EST 2015},
month = {Fri Dec 11 00:00:00 EST 2015}
}
Web of Science
Works referenced in this record:
Injury and Death or Recovery of Trees in Prairie Climate
journal, February 1945
- Albertson, F. W.; Weaver, J. E.
- Ecological Monographs, Vol. 15, Issue 4
Improvement of growth conditions and gas exchange of Fagus sylvatica L. seedlings planted below a recently thinned Pinus sylvestris L. stand
journal, March 2004
- Aranda, I.; Gil, L.; Pardos, J. A.
- Trees - Structure and Function, Vol. 18, Issue 2
Differences in stomatal responses and root to shoot signalling between two grapevine varieties subjected to drought
journal, January 2010
- Beis, Alexandros; Patakas, Angelos
- Functional Plant Biology, Vol. 37, Issue 2
Successional trends and apparent Acer saccharum regeneration failure in an oak-hickory forest in central Missouri, USA
journal, March 2009
- Belden, Angela C.; Pallardy, Stephen G.
- Plant Ecology, Vol. 204, Issue 2
Tree die-off in response to global change-type drought: mortality insights from a decade of plant water potential measurements
journal, May 2009
- Breshears, David D.; Myers, Orrin B.; Meyer, Clifton W.
- Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment, Vol. 7, Issue 4
Appendix: A critical examination of rainfall variability measures used in behavioral ecology studies
journal, July 1996
- Bronikowski, A.; Webb, C.
- Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology, Vol. 39, Issue 1
Timing of climate variability and grassland productivity
journal, February 2012
- Craine, J. M.; Nippert, J. B.; Elmore, A. J.
- Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Vol. 109, Issue 9
Characteristics and trends in various forms of the Palmer Drought Severity Index during 1900–2008
journal, January 2011
- Dai, Aiguo
- Journal of Geophysical Research, Vol. 116, Issue D12
Predawn disequilibrium between plant and soil water potentials in two cold-desert shrubs
journal, August 1999
- Donovan, L. A.; Grisé, D. J.; West, J. B.
- Oecologia, Vol. 120, Issue 2
Predawn plant water potential does not necessarily equilibrate with soil water potential under well-watered conditions
journal, November 2001
- Donovan, L.; Linton, M.; Richards, J.
- Oecologia, Vol. 129, Issue 3
Investigating Interannual Variability of Precipitation at the Global Scale: Is There a Connection with Seasonality?
journal, August 2012
- Fatichi, S.; Ivanov, V. Yu.; Caporali, E.
- Journal of Climate, Vol. 25, Issue 16
Morphological Response to Competition in Red Alder: The Role of Water
journal, August 1993
- Giordano, P. A.; Hibbs, D. E.
- Functional Ecology, Vol. 7, Issue 4
Diurnal and seasonal trends of water relations in five co-occurring chasmophytic species
journal, May 2007
- Gouvra, Evanthia; Grammatikopoulos, George
- Flora - Morphology, Distribution, Functional Ecology of Plants, Vol. 202, Issue 3
Changes in Intense Precipitation over the Central United States
journal, February 2012
- Groisman, Pavel Ya.; Knight, Richard W.; Karl, Thomas R.
- Journal of Hydrometeorology, Vol. 13, Issue 1
Direct and indirect effects of atmospheric conditions and soil moisture on surface energy partitioning revealed by a prolonged drought at a temperate forest site
journal, January 2006
- Gu, Lianhong; Meyers, Tilden; Pallardy, Stephen G.
- Journal of Geophysical Research, Vol. 111, Issue D16
Reliable estimation of biochemical parameters from C3 leaf photosynthesis-intercellular carbon dioxide response curves: Estimating FvCB model parameters
journal, June 2010
- Gu, Lianhong; Pallardy, Stephen G.; Tu, Kevin
- Plant, Cell & Environment, Vol. 33, Issue 11
Drought-influenced mortality of tree species with different predawn leaf water dynamics in a decade-long study of a central US forest
journal, January 2015
- Gu, L.; Pallardy, S. G.; Hosman, K. P.
- Biogeosciences, Vol. 12, Issue 10
Increased rainfall variability and reduced rainfall amount decreases soil CO2 flux in a grassland ecosystem
journal, February 2005
- Harper, Christopher W.; Blair, John M.; Fay, Philip A.
- Global Change Biology, Vol. 11, Issue 2
A Review of Twentieth-Century Drought Indices Used in the United States
journal, August 2002
- Heim, Richard R.
- Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society, Vol. 83, Issue 8
Contingent productivity responses to more extreme rainfall regimes across a grassland biome
journal, December 2009
- Heisler-White, Jana L.; Blair, John M.; Kelly, Eugene F.
- Global Change Biology, Vol. 15, Issue 12
Canopy and litter interception of rainfall by hardwoods of eastern United States
journal, June 1965
- Helvey, J. D.; Patric, J. H.
- Water Resources Research, Vol. 1, Issue 2
Plant Responses to Water Stress
journal, June 1973
- Hsiao, Theodore C.
- Annual Review of Plant Physiology, Vol. 24, Issue 1
Observational- and model-based trends and projections of extreme precipitation over the contiguous United States: JANSSEN ET AL.
journal, February 2014
- Janssen, Emily; Wuebbles, Donald J.; Kunkel, Kenneth E.
- Earth's Future, Vol. 2, Issue 2
The influence of drought on red oak group species growth and mortality in the Missouri Ozarks
journal, July 1995
- Jenkins, Michael A.; Pallardy, Stephen G.
- Canadian Journal of Forest Research, Vol. 25, Issue 7
Nocturnal transpiration causing disequilibrium between soil and stem predawn water potential in mixed conifer forests of Idaho
journal, April 2007
- Kavanagh, K. L.; Pangle, R.; Schotzko, A. D.
- Tree Physiology, Vol. 27, Issue 4
Diurnal Pattern of Water Potential in Woody Plants
journal, December 1968
- Klepper, Betty
- Plant Physiology, Vol. 43, Issue 12
Consequences of More Extreme Precipitation Regimes for Terrestrial Ecosystems
journal, October 2008
- Knapp, Alan K.; Beier, Claus; Briske, David D.
- BioScience, Vol. 58, Issue 9
Plants in water-controlled ecosystems: active role in hydrologic processes and response to water stress
journal, July 2001
- Laio, F.; Porporato, A.; Ridolfi, L.
- Advances in Water Resources, Vol. 24, Issue 7
Drought tolerance, xylem sap abscisic acid and stomatal conductance during soil drying: a comparison of canopy trees of three temperate deciduous angiosperms
journal, July 1998
- Loewenstein, N. J.; Pallardy, S. G.
- Tree Physiology, Vol. 18, Issue 7
A new look at water transport regulation in plants
journal, July 2014
- Martínez-Vilalta, Jordi; Poyatos, Rafael; Aguadé, David
- New Phytologist, Vol. 204, Issue 1
Mechanisms of plant survival and mortality during drought: why do some plants survive while others succumb to drought?
journal, June 2008
- McDowell, Nate; Pockman, William T.; Allen, Craig D.
- New Phytologist, Vol. 178, Issue 4
The mechanisms of carbon starvation: how, when, or does it even occur at all?: Commentary
journal, March 2010
- McDowell, Nate G.; Sevanto, Sanna
- New Phytologist, Vol. 186, Issue 2
Mechanisms Linking Drought, Hydraulics, Carbon Metabolism, and Vegetation Mortality
journal, January 2011
- McDowell, Nathan G.
- Plant Physiology, Vol. 155, Issue 3
The interdependence of mechanisms underlying climate-driven vegetation mortality
journal, October 2011
- McDowell, Nate G.; Beerling, David J.; Breshears, David D.
- Trends in Ecology & Evolution, Vol. 26, Issue 10
More Intense, More Frequent, and Longer Lasting Heat Waves in the 21st Century
journal, August 2004
- Meehl, G. A.
- Science, Vol. 305, Issue 5686
Drought response strategies define the relative contributions of hydraulic dysfunction and carbohydrate depletion during tree mortality
journal, December 2012
- Mitchell, Patrick J.; O'Grady, Anthony P.; Tissue, David T.
- New Phytologist, Vol. 197, Issue 3
A simple method to improve the estimation of the relationship between rainfall and crop yield
journal, September 2007
- Monti, Andrea; Venturi, Gianpietro
- Agronomy for Sustainable Development, Vol. 27, Issue 3
Water stress integral--a link between short-term stress and long-term growth
journal, December 1988
- Myers, B. J.
- Tree Physiology, Vol. 4, Issue 4
Desert Ecosystems: Environment and Producers
journal, November 1973
- Noy-Meir, I.
- Annual Review of Ecology and Systematics, Vol. 4, Issue 1
Elusive drought: uncertainty in observed trends and short- and long-term CMIP5 projections
journal, January 2013
- Orlowsky, B.; Seneviratne, S. I.
- Hydrology and Earth System Sciences, Vol. 17, Issue 5
Changes in Forest Composition in Central Missouri: 1968-1982
journal, October 1988
- Pallardy, S. G.; Nigh, T. A.; Garrett, H. E.
- American Midland Naturalist, Vol. 120, Issue 2
Seasonal and diurnal patterns in leaf gas exchange of Eucalyptus globulus trees growing in Portugal
journal, April 1986
- Pereira, J. S.; Tenhunen, J. D.; Lange, O. L.
- Canadian Journal of Forest Research, Vol. 16, Issue 2
Seasonal variation in competitive effect on water stress and pine responses
journal, July 1994
- Perry, M. A.; Mitchell, R. J.; Zutter, B. R.
- Canadian Journal of Forest Research, Vol. 24, Issue 7
Ecohydrology of water-controlled ecosystems
journal, August 2002
- Porporato, A.; D’Odorico, P.; Laio, F.
- Advances in Water Resources, Vol. 25, Issue 8-12
Plants in water-controlled ecosystems: active role in hydrologic processes and response to water stress
journal, July 2001
- Porporato, A.; Laio, F.; Ridolfi, L.
- Advances in Water Resources, Vol. 24, Issue 7
Aerosols, Climate, and the Hydrological Cycle
journal, December 2001
- Ramanathan, V.
- Science, Vol. 294, Issue 5549
Patterns of tree dieback in Queensland, Australia: the importance of drought stress and the role of resistance to cavitation
journal, April 2004
- Rice, Kevin J.; Matzner, Steven L.; Byer, William
- Oecologia, Vol. 139, Issue 2
Precipitation, dynamical intermittency, and sporadic randomness
journal, August 2010
- Rigby, J. R.; Porporato, Amilcare
- Advances in Water Resources, Vol. 33, Issue 8
A Vegetational Description of a Mid-Missouri Forest Using Gradient Analysis Techniques
journal, April 1972
- Rochow, John J.
- American Midland Naturalist, Vol. 87, Issue 2
Environmental control of leaf water conductance in conifers
journal, March 1976
- Running, Steven W.
- Canadian Journal of Forest Research, Vol. 6, Issue 1
Long-term effects of drought on wild and cultivated plants in the Negev desert: I. Maximal Rates of Net Photosynthesis
journal, April 1980
- Schulze, E. -D.; Hall, A. E.; Lange, O. L.
- Oecologia, Vol. 45, Issue 1
How do trees die? A test of the hydraulic failure and carbon starvation hypotheses: How do trees die?
journal, June 2013
- Sevanto, Sanna; Mcdowell, Nate G.; Dickman, L. Turin
- Plant, Cell & Environment, Vol. 37, Issue 1
Asymmetrical effects of mesophyll conductance on fundamental photosynthetic parameters and their relationships estimated from leaf gas exchange measurements: Asymmetrical mesophyll conductance effects
journal, November 2013
- Sun, Ying; Gu, Lianhong; Dickinson, Robert E.
- Plant, Cell & Environment, Vol. 37, Issue 4
Growth‐induced water potentials and the growth of maize leaves
journal, March 2002
- Tang, An‐Ching; Boyer, John S.
- Journal of Experimental Botany, Vol. 53, Issue 368
The influence of predawn leaf water potential on stomatal responses to atmospheric water content at constant Ci and on stem hydraulic conductance and foliar ABA concentrations
journal, February 1999
- Thomas, D. S.; Eamus, D.
- Journal of Experimental Botany, Vol. 50, Issue 331
Global warming and changes in drought
journal, December 2013
- Trenberth, Kevin E.; Dai, Aiguo; van der Schrier, Gerard
- Nature Climate Change, Vol. 4, Issue 1
A dynamic model for water flow in a single tree: evidence that models must account for hydraulic architecture
journal, September 1988
- Tyree, M. T.
- Tree Physiology, Vol. 4, Issue 3
Correction of Flow Resistances of Plants Measured From Covered and Exposed Leaves
journal, November 1981
- Turner, Neil C.
- Plant Physiology, Vol. 68, Issue 5
Modelling rainfall interception by vegetation of variable density using an adapted analytical model. Part 1. Model description
journal, July 2001
- van Dijk, A. I. J. M.; Bruijnzeel, L. A.
- Journal of Hydrology, Vol. 247, Issue 3-4
Multimodel projections of catchment-scale precipitation regime
journal, May 2008
- Vidal, Jean-Philippe; Wade, Steven D.
- Journal of Hydrology, Vol. 353, Issue 1-2
Changing Frequency of Heavy Rainfall over the Central United States
journal, January 2013
- Villarini, Gabriele; Smith, James A.; Vecchi, Gabriel A.
- Journal of Climate, Vol. 26, Issue 1
Managing productivity and drought risk in Eucalyptus globulus plantations in south-western Australia
journal, December 2009
- White, Donald A.; Crombie, D. Stuart; Kinal, Joe
- Forest Ecology and Management, Vol. 259, Issue 1
Positive impacts of precipitation intensity on monthly CO2 fluxes in North America
journal, January 2013
- Wu, Chaoyang; Chen, Jing M.; Desai, Ankur R.
- Global and Planetary Change, Vol. 100
Environmental controls on water use efficiency during severe drought in an Ozark Forest in Missouri, USA: ENVIRONMENTAL CONTROL ON WATER USE EFFICIENCY
journal, December 2009
- Yang, Bai; Pallardy, Stephen G.; Meyers, Tilden P.
- Global Change Biology, Vol. 16, Issue 8
Simulating leaf area of corn plants at contrasting water status
journal, June 2009
- Yang, Y.; Timlin, D. J.; Fleisher, D. H.
- Agricultural and Forest Meteorology, Vol. 149, Issue 6-7
A review of drought indices
journal, December 2011
- Zargar, Amin; Sadiq, Rehan; Naser, Bahman
- Environmental Reviews, Vol. 19, Issue NA
Altered precipitation regime affects the function and composition of soil microbial communities on multiple time scales
journal, October 2013
- Zeglin, L. H.; Bottomley, P. J.; Jumpponen, A.
- Ecology, Vol. 94, Issue 10
Works referencing / citing this record:
Land‐Atmosphere Responses to a Total Solar Eclipse in Three Ecosystems With Contrasting Structure and Physiology
journal, January 2019
- Wood, J. D.; Sadler, E. J.; Fox, N. I.
- Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres, Vol. 124, Issue 2
The importance of drought–pathogen interactions in driving oak mortality events in the Ozark Border Region
journal, December 2017
- Wood, Jeffrey D.; Knapp, Benjamin O.; Muzika, Rose-Marie
- Environmental Research Letters, Vol. 13, Issue 1
Testing a land model in ecosystem functional space via a comparison of observed and modeled ecosystem flux responses to precipitation regimes and associated stresses in a Central U.S. forest: Test Model in Ecosystem Functional Space
journal, July 2016
- Gu, Lianhong; Pallardy, Stephen G.; Yang, Bai
- Journal of Geophysical Research: Biogeosciences, Vol. 121, Issue 7
Advancing global change biology through experimental manipulations: Where have we been and where might we go?
journal, November 2019
- Hanson, Paul J.; Walker, Anthony P.
- Global Change Biology, Vol. 26, Issue 1
Long-term spatio-temporal precipitation variations in China with precipitation surface interpolated by ANUSPLIN
journal, January 2020
- Guo, Binbin; Zhang, Jing; Meng, Xianyong
- Scientific Reports, Vol. 10, Issue 1
Advancing global change biology through experimental manipulations: Where have we been and where might we go?
journal, November 2019
- Hanson, Paul J.; Walker, Anthony P.
- Global Change Biology, Vol. 26, Issue 1