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A framework for understanding the hydroecology of impacted wet meadows in the Sierra Nevada and Cascade Ranges, California, USA |
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| Authors: | Steven P Loheide II Richard S Deitchman David J Cooper Evan C Wolf Christopher T Hammersmark Jessica D Lundquist |
| Institution: | 1. Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, USA 2. Nelson Institute for Environmental Studies, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, USA 3. Department of Forest, Rangeland, and Watershed Stewardship, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO, USA 4. Center for Watershed Sciences, University of California-Davis, Davis, CA, USA 5. Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA |
| Abstract: | Meadows of the Sierra Nevada and Cascade mountains of California, USA, support diverse and highly productive wet-meadow vegetation dominated by sedges, rushes, grasses, and other herbaceous species. These groundwater–dependent ecosystems rely on the persistence of a shallow water table throughout the dry summer. Case studies of Bear Creek, Last Chance, and Tuolumne meadow ecosystems are used to create a conceptual framework describing groundwater–ecosystem connections in this environment. The water requirements for wet-meadow vegetation at each site are represented as a water-table-depth hydrograph; however, these hydrographs were found to vary among sites. Causes of this variation include (1) differences in soil texture, which govern capillary effects and availability of vadose water and (2) elevation-controlled differences in climate that affect the phenology of the vegetation. The field observations show that spatial variation of water-table depth exerts strong control on vegetation composition and spatial patterning. Groundwater-flow modeling demonstrates that lower hydraulic-conductivity meadow sediments, higher groundwater-inflow rates, and a higher ratio of lateral to basal-groundwater inflow all encourage the persistence of a high water table and wet-meadow vegetation, particularly at the margin of the meadow, even in cases with moderate stream incision. |
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