How is water-use efficiency of terrestrial ecosystems distributed and changing on Earth?

217Citations
Citations of this article
330Readers
Mendeley users who have this article in their library.

This article is free to access.

Abstract

A better understanding of ecosystem water-use efficiency (WUE) will help us improve ecosystem management for mitigation as well as adaption to global hydrological change. Here, long-term flux tower observations of productivity and evapotranspiration allow us to detect a consistent latitudinal trend in WUE, rising from the subtropics to the northern high-latitudes. The trend peaks at approximately 51°N, and then declines toward higher latitudes. These ground-based observations are consistent with global-scale estimates of WUE. Global analysis of WU Ereveals existence of strong regional variations that correspond to global climate patterns. The latitudinal trends of global WUEfor Earth's major plant functional types reveal two peaks in the Northern Hemisphere not detected by ground-based measurements. One peak is located at 20° ~ 30°N and the other extends a little farther north than 51°N. Finally, long-term spatiotemporal trend analysis using satellite-based remote sensing data reveals that land-cover and land-use change in recent years has led to a decline in global WUE. Our study provides a new framework for global research on the interactions between carbon and water cycles as well as responses to natural and human impacts.

Cite

CITATION STYLE

APA

Tang, X., Li, H., Desai, A. R., Nagy, Z., Luo, J., Kolb, T. E., … Ammann, C. (2014). How is water-use efficiency of terrestrial ecosystems distributed and changing on Earth? Scientific Reports, 4. https://doi.org/10.1038/srep07483

Register to see more suggestions

Mendeley helps you to discover research relevant for your work.

Already have an account?

Save time finding and organizing research with Mendeley

Sign up for free