Simulation of rainfall interception of canopy and litter in eucalyptus plantation in tropical climate

Abstract

The interception of rainfall by vegetation is an important process in the hydrological cycle and has been the subject of research for several decades. Researchers have intensified investigations of the contribution of the water balance components in eucalyptus productivity. There are few reports of modeling canopy and litter rainfall interception in eucalyptus plantations. The objectives of this work were to measure and to simulate canopy and litter rainfall interception in an eucalyptus plantation located in a tropical climate area. The Rutter model was used for simulating the canopy rainfall interception, and the tank model was applied for simulating the litter rainfall interception. The estimated interception values were compared with measured values. The results showed that the maximum accumulated difference between the measured canopy rainfall interception and that estimated by the Rutter model was 6.2 mm, corresponding to 1.1% of the gross rainfall. The litter rainfall interception presented a maximum accumulated difference between the measured and estimated values of 0.8 mm, equivalent to 0.2% of the gross rainfall. The Rutter and tank models were efficient for simulating canopy and litter rainfall interception, respectively, for eucalyptus plantations in the tropical study area. © 2012 by the Society of American Foresters.