Changes in evapotranspiration and phenology as consequences of shrub removal in dry forests of central Argentina
Abstract
More than half of the dry woodlands (forests and shrublands) of the world are in South
America, mainly in Brazil and Argentina, where in the last years intense land use
changes have occurred. This study evaluated how the transition from woody-dominated
to grass-dominated system affected key ecohydrological variables and biophysical processes
over 20000ha of dry forest in central Argentina. We used a simplified surface energy
balance model together with moderate-resolution imaging spectroradiometer-normalized
difference vegetation index data to analyse changes in above primary productivity,
phenology, actual evapotranspiration, albedo and land surface temperature for four
complete growing seasons (2004-2009). The removal of woody vegetation decreased aboveground
primary productivity by 15-21%, with an effect that lasted at least 4years, shortened
the growing season between 1 and 3months and reduced evapotranspiration by as much
as 30%. Albedo and land surface temperature increased significantly after the woody
to grassland conversion. Our findings highlight the role of woody vegetation in regulating
water dynamics and ecosystem phenology and show how changes in vegetative cover can
influence regional climatic change. © 2015 John Wiley
Type
Journal articleSubject
Science & TechnologyLife Sciences & Biomedicine
Physical Sciences
Ecology
Environmental Sciences
Water Resources
Environmental Sciences & Ecology
water dynamics
ecosystem phenology
remote sensing
NDVI
selective deforestation
Dry Chaco
SURFACE-TEMPERATURE
CLIMATE
WATER
PRODUCTIVITY
DEFORESTATION
VARIABILITY
EVAPORATION
RETRIEVAL
DIVERSITY
ALGORITHM
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https://hdl.handle.net/10161/24231Published Version (Please cite this version)
10.1002/eco.1583Publication Info
Marchesini, VA; Fernández, RJ; Reynolds, JF; Sobrino, JA; & Di Bella, CM (2015). Changes in evapotranspiration and phenology as consequences of shrub removal in dry
forests of central Argentina. Ecohydrology, 8(7). pp. 1304-1311. 10.1002/eco.1583. Retrieved from https://hdl.handle.net/10161/24231.This is constructed from limited available data and may be imprecise. To cite this
article, please review & use the official citation provided by the journal.
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Show full item recordScholars@Duke
James F. Reynolds
Professor Emeritus
Integrated assessment of complex human-environmental systems; Land degradation and
desertification in global drylands; Conceptual frameworks and models to advance the
science of dryland development

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