Soil hydrology is independent of microphytic crust cover: Further evidence from a wooded semiarid australian rangeland
Citation
Merrin E Tozer, David J Eldridge, and S Slangen, Soil hydrology is independent of microphytic crust cover: Further evidence from a wooded semiarid australian rangeland: .
Summary
Rainfall simulation experiments were performed on 25 plots of varying microphytic crust cover in a wooded semiarid rangeland in eastern Australia. Under a rainfall intensity of 45 mm h-1, steady-state infiltration ranged from 5 mm h-1 to 41 mm h-1, but there was no effect of cover on this or any of the other soil hydrological variables measured. When disturbed plots with low cover (<15% cover) were excluded from the analyses, significant increases in time to ponding were associated with increases in crust cover. Despite some significant relationships, however, crust cover was an insignificant predictor of soil hydrological status at this site. We attribute this to the well-structured nature of the soils at the site, which have not [...]
Summary
Rainfall simulation experiments were performed on 25 plots of varying
microphytic crust cover in a wooded semiarid rangeland in eastern
Australia. Under a rainfall intensity of 45 mm h-1, steady-state
infiltration ranged from 5 mm h-1 to 41 mm h-1, but there was no effect
of cover on this or any of the other soil hydrological variables
measured. When disturbed plots with low cover (<15% cover) were
excluded from the analyses, significant increases in time to ponding
were associated with increases in crust cover. Despite some significant
relationships, however, crust cover was an insignificant predictor of
soil hydrological status at this site. We attribute this to the
well-structured nature of the soils at the site, which have not been
subjected to grazing by domestic animals for almost 20 years. The
results support earlier work suggesting that in the short term, crust
cover is only an important moderator of soil hydrology when soils are
degraded. Published in Arid Land Research and Management, volume 11,
issue 2, on pages 113 - 126, in 1997.
