2022 Early Hearing Detection & Intervention Virtual Conference

March 13 - 15, 2022

<< BACK TO AGENDA

6/06/2017  |   2:45 PM - 3:00 PM   |  URBAN STREAMFLOW SUBSIDIES INFLUENCE RIPARIAN VEGETATION AND SOILS IN A MEDITERRANEAN CLIMATE   |  302A

URBAN STREAMFLOW SUBSIDIES INFLUENCE RIPARIAN VEGETATION AND SOILS IN A MEDITERRANEAN CLIMATE

In Mediterranean climates, urban runoff can dramatically increase streamflow during the summer dry season, sometimes causing intermittent streams to become perennial. We examined the effects of summer streamflow subsidies on riparian soils and vegetation along headwater streams in the metropolitan region of Sacramento, California. Localized dry-season water subsidies in this area create a heterogeneous distribution of perennial and intermittent stream reaches, and we sampled soils and understory vegetation at the stream edge in forty 150-m reaches during summer 2016. We found that perennial reaches supported significantly more live plant cover (p < 0.05) and species richness (p < 0.01) than intermittent reaches, as well as higher levels of soil organic matter (p < 0.001). Greater cover and richness in perennial reaches were due to both native and non-native species, including recognized invasive plants. Promotion of urban water conservation in this area could increasingly restore an intermittent flow regime in small streams. While this change would mimic historical conditions and might limit the spread of some invasive species, it could also limit riparian zone productivity, nutrient retention, and native biodiversity.

  • C28 Land-Water Interfaces
  • C36 Water Resource Management
  • C08 Urban Ecology

Presentation:
This presentation has not yet been uploaded.

Handouts:
Handout is not Available

Transcripts:
CART transcripts are NOT YET available, but will be posted shortly after the conference


Presenters/Authors

Joanna Solins (), University of California, Davis, jsolins@ucdavis.edu;


ASHA DISCLOSURE:

Financial -

Nonfinancial -

Mary Cadenasso (), University of California, Davis, mlcadenasso@ucdavis.edu;


ASHA DISCLOSURE:

Financial -

Nonfinancial -