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García-Leoz Et Al 2018 Land Cover Effects On Water Balance Partitions in Colombian Andes

This study investigates the impact of different vegetation cover types on water balance partitioning in the Colombian Andes, highlighting that natural vegetation recovery stages enhance water availability. The research demonstrates that vegetation cover significantly influences hydrologic dynamics, particularly at shorter temporal scales, with early recovery stages being more effective in maintaining soil moisture and reducing water losses. The findings provide valuable insights for land management decisions aimed at balancing ecosystem services and societal demands for water resources.

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0% found this document useful (0 votes)
12 views13 pages

García-Leoz Et Al 2018 Land Cover Effects On Water Balance Partitions in Colombian Andes

This study investigates the impact of different vegetation cover types on water balance partitioning in the Colombian Andes, highlighting that natural vegetation recovery stages enhance water availability. The research demonstrates that vegetation cover significantly influences hydrologic dynamics, particularly at shorter temporal scales, with early recovery stages being more effective in maintaining soil moisture and reducing water losses. The findings provide valuable insights for land management decisions aimed at balancing ecosystem services and societal demands for water resources.

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angsantosgo
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Reg Environ Change (2018) 18:1117–1129

https://doi.org/10.1007/s10113-017-1249-7

ORIGINAL ARTICLE

Land cover effects on water balance partitioning in the Colombian


Andes: improved water availability in early stages of natural
vegetation recovery
Vanessa García-Leoz 1 & Juan Camilo Villegas 1 & Diego Suescún 2 & Claudia P. Flórez 2 &
Luis Merino-Martín 3 & Teresita Betancur 1 & Juan Diego León 2

Received: 21 April 2017 / Accepted: 29 October 2017 / Published online: 17 November 2017
# Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany 2017

Abstract Vegetation actively affects different components of characterized by seven types of vegetation cover. Overall, veg-
the water budget in multiple spatial and temporal scales. etation cover effects on hydrologic partitioning are more pro-
Changes in vegetation cover and structure—such as those nounced in shorter, weekly to seasonal, timescales than in an-
resulting from land use—alter natural ecohydrological dynam- nual timescales. Natural vegetation cover types have a higher
ics, leading to changes in natural hydrologic regimes. In tropical potential for maintaining water availability, as evidenced by
mountain ecosystems, such as the Colombian Andes, signifi- lower variability of soil moisture storage and hydrological
cant areas of native forests have been converted to agro- fluxes both within and between seasons. Notably, among all
ecosystems that include pasturelands and croplands, to supply cover types, early stages of natural vegetation recovery appear
societal demands for other ecosystem services. Yet, services to be more effective in maintaining higher levels of soil mois-
such as water provision and hydropower generation that depend ture while decreasing potential overland flow and other water
on the regulation of hydrologic fluxes are also demanded from losses, therefore more effectively contributing to deep drainage
these ecosystems, potentially generating conflicting societal de- and potentially to groundwater recharge, which relate to hydro-
mands. In this study, we assess the effect of vegetation cover logic regulation and, ultimately, water availability. Collectively,
type and rainfall seasonality on the dynamics of hydrological our results provide insights for decision-making in land man-
partitioning—an indicator of hydrologic regulation—at three agement, particualrly when provisioning and regulatory ecosys-
temporal scales, in a simulated gradient of human disturbance tem services are demanded from these strategic ecosystems.

Editor: Juan Ignacio Lopez Moreno.


Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article
(https://doi.org/10.1007/s10113-017-1249-7) contains supplementary
material, which is available to authorized users.

* Vanessa García-Leoz Teresita Betancur


[email protected] [email protected]
* Juan Camilo Villegas Juan Diego León
[email protected] [email protected]

Diego Suescún 1
Grupo GIGA, Escuela Ambiental, Universidad de Antioquia, calle
[email protected]
70 No. 52 – 21, Medellín, Colombia
Claudia P. Flórez 2
Departamento de Ciencias Forestales, Universidad Nacional de
[email protected] Colombia - Sede Medellín, Medellín, Colombia
3
Luis Merino-Martín AMAP, CIRAD, CNRS, INRA, IRD, Université de Montpellier,
[email protected] Montpellier, France
1118 V. García-Leoz et al. (2018) 18:1117–1129

Keywords Land use change . Water balance . Hydrologic into pastures either by re-seeding or by allowing nearby pas-
regulation . Ecosystem function . Forest degradation . Tropical tures to colonize abandoned areas. In general, this entire cycle
ecohydrology is repeated all the way from initial land preparation every 4–
5 years. However, in some cases, lands are abandoned after
harvesting and enter a rest period for a few years, allowing
Introduction ecological succession to develop (Crk et al. 2009). The trajec-
tory (including species composition and structure) of natural
Vegetation plays a key role in the hydrological cycle through its vegetation recovery depends on the specific characteristics of
effects in the soil-atmosphere continuum, and through its role in each ecosystem including the extent of cumulative human im-
the interactions between surface and subsurface components of pacts in the ecosystem. It is common then, to find a mosaic of
the water budget (Rodriguez-Iturbe 2000). Changes in vegeta- productive lands under different crop types mixed with natural
tion cover associated with land use or other global change- areas in different successional stages. The first successional
related processes (Allen et al. 2015) result in altered stage, so-called fallow land, takes approximately 2–3 years to
ecohydrological dynamics of ecosystems and watersheds develop and is characterized by slow colonization of smaller
(Foley and De Fries 2005). These ecohydrological changes often vegetation, with large areas of bare soil (Nunes et al. 2011).
result in alterations that affect the potential benefits that society Depending on the surrounding matrix, fallow lands can be
derives from the natural functioning of ecosystems (i.e., colonized by exotic grasses (non-native to these areas) or na-
ecosystem services, Hassan et al. 2005; Jobbágy et al. 2008). tive shrubs that lead to a low shrubland-like stage that gener-
The potential loss of ecosystem services, associated with ecosys- ally develops over a period of approximately 15 years. After
tem degradation—particularly forest clearance, followed by sur- this, taller woody plants colonize, creating a diverse secondary
face soil degradation (Bruijnzeel 2004; Carpenter et al. 2006)— growth that lasts approximately 30–40 years, before the estab-
increases human vulnerability to global change (Hassan et al. lishment of the oak-dominated stage (Quercus humboldtii
2005), especially in communities with lower adaptation and mit- Bonpl.) associated with mature-native forests in this region
igation capacity, such as many areas in the humid tropics (Foley (Van der Hammen 1983). Notably, this successional process
and De Fries 2005; Mukul and Herbohn 2016). can be altered at any time by natural ecological dynamics, by
In many regions of the world, the conversion of natural direct anthropic intervention, or by biophysical constraints im-
forests into other cover types has been driven by the need to posed often by the impacts of previously intensive land use
provide food, timber, and firewood to a growing population practices (Crk et al. 2009; Nunes et al. 2011).
(Foley and De Fries 2005; Nunes et al. 2011). This has result- The structural and functional conditions defined by these
ed in a rapid increase in deforestation rates during the twenti- successional dynamics induce changes in ecohydrological pro-
eth century, mostly concentrated in tropical regions (Gibbs cesses that determine the dynamics of soil moisture, and ulti-
et al. 2010; Vedovato et al. 2016), and particularly in mountain mately result in modifications of streamflow (Bruijnzeel 2004;
areas, where a significant portion of the population is concen- Tejedor et al. 2012) and groundwater dynamics (Mishra et al.
trated (Hassan et al. 2005). For example, in the central region 2014). More specifically, the replacement of natural forests
of Colombia, land cover change is generally directed towards with shorter-statured vegetation has been previously associated
the establishment of pastures for cattle raising, alternated with with changes in soil permeability (Hassler et al. 2011), in-
the establishment of fast-rotation agricultural systems (Mukul creased instantaneous runoff (Suescún et al. 2017), reduced
et al. 2016), established through very intensive agricultural canopy interception (Zimmermann et al. 2013), and increased
practices (Suescún et al. 2017). These transitions result in a transpiration resulting from increased stomatal conductance of
mosaic of land cover types in the landscape, which are highly pioneer plants (Giambelluca et al. 2000; Juhrbandt et al. 2004).
dynamic in space and time as they are transformed. Also, alterations of soil physical properties that determine the
The traditional conversion process in the Colombian Andes, partitioning of precipitation into runoff and infiltration have
where natural ecosystems coexist with human populations, potential effects on groundwater recharge and subsurface flow
begins with forest clearing, followed by land preparation with patterns and amounts (Chandler and Walter 1998). These pro-
intense tillage and conformation of terraces mostly to improve cesses are generally associated with the regulation of
soil water retention. The use of heavy machinery is prevalent, streamflow in watersheds and more generally the hydrologic
even in a traditional slash and burn context, particularly in the regulation function of ecosystems (Bruijnzeel 2004; Brown
establishment of high rotation transitory crops (such as potato et al. 2005; Salazar et al. 2017), defined as the partitioning
crops), the main alternate land use to pastures in the region. between hydrologic fluxes and soil moisture storage.
Once crops are established, intensive use of agrochemicals and In the last two decades, a large body of research has made
pesticides is common, all through the cultivation cycle, which significant improvements in our understanding of the effects
generally lasts for approximately 5 months. After a few culti- of land cover conversion in the hydrological function of trop-
vation cycles (generally between 2 and 3), land is converted ical pre-montane and montane forests (Bruijnzeel 2004;
Land cover effects on water balance partitioning in the Colombian Andes: improved... (2018) 18:1117–1129 1119

Fleischbein et al. 2006; Muñoz-Villers and McDonnell 2013; weeks that represented mean and extreme conditions, to ana-
Suescún et al. 2017). However, lacking are studies that direct- lyze the effects of vegetation cover on particular processes that
ly evaluate contrasting effects of different vegetation cover are generally relevant due to their relation to either extremes of
types—including cultural practices in productive cover the hydrologic regimes, and that have important societal
types—on hydrological processes related to ecosystem func- implications.
tions that result in ecosystem services (Foley and De Fries
2005). Further, it is particularly relevant to understand the
effect of vegetation cover change on hydrological dynamics Methods
at multiple temporal scales, particularly for areas with marked
precipitation seasonality, where vegetation plays a key role in Study area
regulating hydrological extremes (Recha and Johannes 2012;
Krishnaswamy et al. 2012). The field phase of this study was developed in a experimental
Here we evaluate the effect of vegetation change on the area located in the Rio Grande basin, in the central Andes of
dynamics of hydrological partitioning in three temporal Colombia (06° 48′ 28.94″ N–75° 30′ 0.60″ W), at an altitude
scales. We use an experimental design that includes a group of approx. 2800 m above sea level (Fig. 1), corresponding to a
of seven vegetation cover types, representing a gradient of lower montane rain/cloud forest, according to the Holdridge
human intervention, characteristic of the mountains in the life zone classification system (Holdridge 1967). Climate in
tropical Andes. We monitored the dynamics of the main com- the area is generally cool and wet, with an average annual
ponents of the water budget for a year, separating it into dry temperature between 12 and 15 °C. Mean annual precipitation
and wet seasons. Within each season, we selected particular is 1857 mm (Empresas Públicas de Medellín 2005), in a

Fig. 1 Location of the study area within the Rio Grande basin in the central Andes of Colombia. Colors indicate altitude in the basin and the yellow dot
the location of our study plots in the basin
1120 V. García-Leoz et al. (2018) 18:1117–1129

bimodal distribution with two wet seasons (April–May and climatic, topographic, and edaphic properties. Land use cate-
October–November) and two dry seasons (December– gories in our observational experiment included active crop-
February and June–August) (Poveda 2004). Our study site is lands (of two types), pastures, and four stages of natural suc-
located in the Santa Rosa de Osos Plateau, characterized by cession (Fig. 2; Table 1; Appendix Table 1 with specific char-
soft rolling hills with moderate to mild slopes. Soils are gen- acteristics of each experimental site).
erally derived from the decomposition of quartz-dominated For each cover type, we established two experimental ar-
Batholithic rock, with granitic characteristics and of the rays (further referred to as B1^ and B2^) to measure water
Andisol type, corresponding to wet-cold soil associations fluxes from the top of the canopy to a depth of 80 cm in the
(IGAC 2007). In our study area, generally representative of soil profile. Water that infiltrates beyond this depth is assumed
the tropical mid-mountain areas, vast portions of natural forest to have surpassed the influence of the majority of the root
have been converted into agro-pastoral uses. The dominant mass in most types of vegetation cover in this study.
land use in this area corresponds to pastures for small-scale Therefore, we use water content at this point as an indicator
dairy farming, followed by (and mixed with) several kinds of of water potentially in transit to becoming deep drainage or
crops (including potato, corn, beans, and avocado plantations, groundwater recharge (preliminary observations of isotopic
among other minor crops). The composition of agricultural signatures of water in this level and groundwater from a near-
activities is generally determined by regional and national by well highlight a similar composition, supporting our as-
demands for agricultural products and market dynamics sumption—data not shown). Plots in the same cover type were
(DeFries et al. 2010). located as close as possible to each other, considering similar
slope and cover conditions (mostly between 20 and 100 m
Experimental design distance), and instrumented with analogue measuring devices
that collected cumulative fluxes between weekly measure-
We used a space for time substitution approach, in which ments. We monitored a total of 51 weeks, between January
different stages of ecosystem degradation/recovery are moni- and December 2014. Measurements include total incoming
tored at the same time. In our approach, we consider a group precipitation (Pi), throughfall and stemflow (Pu, Sf—where
of seven land cover types that simulate a conventional gradi- canopies were present), runoff (R), litter layer water retention
ent of human intervention in our study area (as described in (Io), infiltration to the A soil horizon (Ia), and water in transit
the BIntroduction^ section). All our experimental plots were to deep drainage (Dd).
located in privately owned property with a mosaic of vegeta- Pi was measured with cylindrical 6-in.-diameter rain
tion cover types that allowed control of spatial variability in gauges (three located through the study area), no more than

Fig. 2 Vegetation cover types


selected along an typical
gradient of human intervention in
the tropical Andes of Colombia.
Vegetation cover types include
(F) forest, (HS) late successional
high shrubland, (LS) early
successional low shrubland, (FL)
recently abandoned fallow land,
(P) pasture, (PC) permanent
croplands, and (TC) high-rotation
transitory croplands
Land cover effects on water balance partitioning in the Colombian Andes: improved... (2018) 18:1117–1129 1121

Table 1 Description of vegetation cover types included in this study

Cover type Code Description

Forest F Forest (F) dominated by mature Andean Oak (Quercus humboldtii Bonpl. Fagaceae)
Late successional high shrubland HS Later stage of succession, still dominated by Andean oak with a slightly different size distribution
Early successional low shrubland LS Former pasture where succession is dominated by ferns and shrubs with sporadic presence of young
trees of the same species of the neighboring forest patches
Recently abandoned fallow land FL Recently abandoned after timber from a Pinus patula Schltdl. Cham. Pinaceae plantation was harvested.
After clearing, land was burned and no other intervention was done until the end of the experiments,
when shrubby vegetation was present
Pasture P Dominated by Pennisetum clandestinum Hochst. ex Chiov (Poaceae), an exotic grass commonly
planted in the area for cattle ranching (primarily dairy farming)
Permanent cropland PC Plantation of Pennisetum americanum (L.) Leeke (Poaceae), used for feeding housed cattle.
The growing period and agricultural practices of this cover are significantly less intensive than
those in other types of crops
Transitory cropland TC Very intensive agricultural practices (including mechanized plowing, permanent soil removal,
application of agricultural amendments and pesticides) and short cultivation period (two to three
harvests per year). In our study period, a potato and a corn plantation (potato Solanum tuberosum
L. Solanaceae and corn Zea mays L. Poaceae) was established in the plots

1 km apart from each other. Pu, which corresponds to the average), precipitation, relative humidity, wind speed and
amount of rain that reaches the soil after passing through for- direction, atmospheric pressure, and solar radiation.
est canopies, was estimated as the average of seven rain Potential evapotranspiration (ETP) was estimated through
gauges installed in a linear transect inside each experimental the Penman–Monteith equation with data from the weath-
array in the F and HS covers (assuming that random location er station (Monteith 1965). In addition, two soil samples
of gauges accounts for spatial variability of throughfall—but were collected for the surface horizon (A horizon) at each
see Holwerda et al. 2006). On each plot, we randomly defined location for the determination of physical and hydraulic
a 14-m transect in which rain gauges were located every 2 m, properties used for water balance calculations. These
one to the left and one to the right of the transect, 2 m apart properties included Bouyoucos texture, bulk density, po-
from the transect line. Sf, which corresponds to the amount of rosity, and water holding capacity (from determination of
water that drains around tree trunks, was measured from the field capacity and wilting point through the pressure plate
total water volume collected in 12 stem collars installed in method) (Appendix Table 2). Additionally, infiltration
randomly located trees representing the tree diameter distribu- tests were performed with concentric rings to determine
tion of both F and HS. R was measured from bounded 20-m2 soil infiltration capacity in each plot (one per replicate).
(10 × 2-m) runoff plots. Soil water fluxes were derived from Outer ring dimensions were 70 × 30 cm, while inner di-
infiltration estimations (P-R) and distributed across the soil mensions were 70 × 15 cm (Appendix Table 3).
profile using proportional distribution of soil water measured
by zero-tension lysimeters installed in a soil profile, with two Water balance calculations
lysimeters at each of three depths in the profile: at first 5–
10 cm of soil, 30 cm from top, and 80 cm from top. Weekly Field measurements of hydrological fluxes, combined
volumes (Pi, Pu, Sf, and R) were converted to water depth with observations from the weather station, were used to
(mm) by relating them to each instrument’s catchment area. estimate the partitioning of the water balance for each
In the case of Sf, volume was related with the mean basal area vegetation cover type. A conventional water balance
(m2/ha) of the forest stand. Net precipitation in forest covers (Thornthwaite and Mather 1957) approach was used to
(Pn) is calculated as the sum of Sf and average Pu. Canopy determine the partitioning of precipitation fluxes (P—cor-
interception (Int) is calculated as the difference between Pi responding to Pi or Pn according to vegetation cover
and Pn. type), into runoff (R—as measured in the field), evapo-
Meteorological variables were monitored with a Davis transpiration (ETR), subsurface drainage and lateral flow
Vantage Pro2 station installed in the study area at 2780 m (Dd+A), and soil moisture storage change with time (ΔS/
above sea level. Collected information covers the period Δt). In this model, ETR (combination of intercepted wa-
from May to December 2014 (7 months), with a sampling ter, direct soil evaporation, and transpiration) is estimated
frequency of 1-min, integrated in 5-min intervals. The from atmospheric demand (ETP—from weather station)
station monitored temperature (maximum, minimum, and and soil moisture availability derived from the top two
1122 V. García-Leoz et al. (2018) 18:1117–1129

lysimeters (assuming soil moisture never drops below Water balance was calculated for each week, and aggregat-
wilting point); Dd+A is estimated as the proportion of ed at both seasonal (wet and dry seasons) and annual (the
infiltration that passes through the lowest lysimeter in entire observation period) scales to assess the effects of vege-
combination with an estimated excess soil moisture tation cover type in different timescales. Rainfall seasonality
(moisture greater than field capacity—at the end of each was determined from our observations, considering the typical
Δt); and ΔS/Δt corresponds to the final closure of the bimodal regime of this region (hydrologic year with two wet
water budget, calculated for each week of observation (a and two dry seasons that last approximately 3 months; Poveda
summary of soil and land use attributes used in the calcu- 2004). We considered a wet season a continuous period with
lation of weekly water balance is presented in Appendix precipitation higher than the monthly average (i.e., 125 mm/
Tables 2 and 3). Given that the zero-tension lysimeters month). The rest of the months were considered as dry season.
used in this study potentially underestimate drainage In addition, within each season, we selected dry, average, and
(larger plates gave much larger volumes in a comparable wet weeks to study the influence of short-term hydrological
study in Costa Rica; Radulovich and Sollins 1987), their variability on the effect of vegetation cover on hydrological
measurements were used to estimate the proportional regulation. For each season, the dry week was considered to
amount of water that reaches each depth in the soil pro- be the driest week (with measurable precipitation) in the sea-
file. Infiltration at each soil depth was estimated as this son, the wet week was the wettest week in the season (consis-
proportion multiplied by the total amount of infiltration tently across all vegetation cover types), and the average week
calculated as the difference between precipitation (Pi or was a week with similar precipitation to the average weekly
Pn) and R. Overall, we use a combination of observed and precipitation on each corresponding season (Appendix
modeled hydrological fluxes, a conventional procedure Table 4).
that reduces model uncertainty, leading to more realistic Differences in runoff (R), evapotranspiration (ETR),
results (Lo et al. 2010). water in transit to deep drainage (Dd+A), and soil

Fig. 3 a Seasonal distribution of


precipitation including two wet
and two dry seasons. b Weekly
precipitation distribution within
each season, and classification of
weeks depending on precipitation
amount
Land cover effects on water balance partitioning in the Colombian Andes: improved... (2018) 18:1117–1129 1123

Fig. 4 Water balance partitioning


into precipitation (P), runoff (R),
evapotranspiration (ET), water in
transit to deep drainage and lateral
flow in the soil (Dd+A), and
change in soil moisture storage
(ΔS/Δt) at the annual scale (a)
and for the dry (b) and wet (c)
seasons, for all vegetation cover
types, including plot replicates.
Denominations 1 and 2 in the
seasonal water budget refer to
experimental plots on each cover
type

moisture (ΔS), at seasonal and annual scales, were ana- Post hoc Wilcoxon–Nemenyi–McDonald–Thompson tests
lyzed using non-parametric tests for repeated measures were performed with the Bcoin^ and Bmultcomp^ pack-
(Friedman test and post hoc Wilcoxon–Nemenyi– ages in R program (Hothorn et al. 2006; Hothorn et al.
McDonald–Thompson test; Hollander and Wolfe 1999). 2008).
1124 V. García-Leoz et al. (2018) 18:1117–1129

Fig. 5 Effects of vegetation


cover type on water balance
components for average weekly
fluxes, in the annual and seasonal
timescales in all vegetation cover
types. Letters above each bar (a–
e) indicate statistically different
groups, highlighting differences
between vegetation cover types

Results record, contributed to 68.1% (1125 mm) of the total record-


ed precipitation. Both wet and dry seasons in the second half
Precipitation dynamics of the year were longer and with about twice as much pre-
cipitation as their analogues in the first half of the year.
A total of 1653 mm of Pi was recorded in the 51 weeks Rainfall seasonality is generally defined by the total amount
monitored in this study (between January and December of rain accumulated in the season. Average rainfall intensity
2014), less than the regional average for the region for individual precipitation events does not significantly vary
(1857 mm, Empresas Públicas de Medellín 2005). between seasons (Suescún et al. 2017) in the study area.
Interception by forest canopies reached an average of Differences in the total amount of rainfall are more related
13.5% of incoming precipitation (11% forest with a coeffi- to increased frequency and duration of precipitation events.
cient of variation of 0.93, and 16% high shrubs with a co- In all the seasons, we identified two wet and two dry weeks,
efficient of variation of 0.99), a typical value for these types as described in the BMethods^ section (Fig. 3b). For the
of ecosystems (similar to reports from Vis 1986; Veneklass seasonal analysis, we only used data from weeks 1 to 44,
and Van Ek 1990). Overall, precipitation had a bimodal as weeks 45 to 51 correspond to the first dry season of the
regime, common in this region of Northern South America following year that was still not completed when we fin-
(Fig. 3a). Wet seasons, which occurred in 41% of the total ished our data collection.
Land cover effects on water balance partitioning in the Colombian Andes: improved... (2018) 18:1117–1129 1125

Land cover effects on water balance partitioning demands (Fig. 4b and Appendix Table 7). In contrast, in the
in multiple timescales wet seasons, water mostly goes to Dd+A and increases soil
moisture storage, after supplying the atmospheric demands of
Annual water balance ET. Variation of fluxes among vegetation cover types is more
pronounced in the first wet season (Appendix Table 6), which
The effects of vegetation cover type are not evident in the was shorter and significantly drier than the second wet season.
partitioning of the water balance at the annual scale. In this period, Dd+A was the most variable flux among veg-
Although there were no significant differences among cover etation cover types, representing between 3.5 and 28.3% of
types (P > 0.05), the greatest effects of vegetation cover occur the total proportion of the water budget not corresponding to
in R, Dd+A, and most notably ΔS/Δt, where differences be- precipitation, with greater values occurring in HS2, LS1, PC1,
tween natural vegetation and the other vegetation types are and PC2. Similarly, ΔS/Δt is highly variable, representing
more significant (Figs. 4a and 5). Precipitation partitioning between 8.9 and 33.9% of the total water balance, particularly
(1653 mm in open areas and 1196 mm in forest covers, after high in F1, FL1, FL2, and TC1. In contrast, R is only present
accounting for interception losses) was dominated (as expect- in P1, representing 4.7% of the water balance (Fig. 4c,
ed) by evapotranspiration (between 732 and 818 mm), follow- Appendix Tables 6 and 7).
ed by the water in transit to deep drainage (Dd+A; between Overall, the greatest seasonal effects of vegetation cover
377 and 666 mm) and change in soil moisture storage (ΔS/ occur in R and Dd+A, where not only seasonal differences
Δt), which had greater variability among covers (Fig. 4a and but also vegetation cover effects are present. For R, there are
Appendix Table 5). Both of these properties are potentially significant differences (P < 0.05) between natural forests and
directly related to hydrological regulation and respond to veg- croplands (of both kinds) for both hydrological seasons, while
etation cover. the remaining covers are not significantly different from these
two groups. In this case, the seasonal effects are more pro-
Seasonal water balance nounced and generally overtake the effects of vegetation cov-
er. In the dry seasons, as expected, most precipitation inputs
At the seasonal scale, differences among vegetation cover are returned to the atmosphere via ET in all vegetation cover
types are more evident and vary depending on the type of types. However, there seems to be an influence of the previous
season (Fig. 4, Appendix Tables 6 and 7). In the dry seasons, wet season on the partitioning of the water budget in the sec-
most precipitation becomes ET, with small contributions to ond dry season—an indication of hydrologic regulation,
Dd+A, particularly in the second dry season. During these which directly relates to vegetation cover. A similar behavior
seasons, ΔS/Δt is generally negative, as water stored in the occurs in the wet seasons (significantly different from the dry
soil is generally used to supply atmospheric and vegetation seasons), although in this case there are significant differences

Fig. 6 Short-term water balance partitioning for typical weeks. (Average, wetter than average, and drier than average) in the two dry (top panels) and wet
(lower panels) seasons of the year
1126 V. García-Leoz et al. (2018) 18:1117–1129

second half of the year, which were generally wetter than the
first half (Fig. 6—lower panels). There is higher variability in
average weeks, depending on the type of season. In general, in
the dry seasons most precipitation is converted into evapo-
transpiration, except for the second dry season where there
is a small contribution to soil moisture storage (except for
HS2; Fig. 6 top panels). Similarly, there is a small contribution
to Dd+A in LS2, PC2, and TC2. These effects are more pro-
nounced, as expected, in the wet seasons, with higher values
of ΔS/Δt in F1, FL1, and TC1 for the first wet season and,
similarly, Dd+A in both the first and second wet seasons (Fig.
6—bottom panels). Notably, it is in the average weeks where
the highest values of R occur, particularly in P1 for the first
wet season. Finally, for the wet weeks, there seems not to be
an effect of seasonality (except for ET), as in both wet and dry
seasons, the distribution of fluxes remain relatively similar,
with predominance of positive values of ΔS/Δt and Dd+A.
In this case, there was some occurrence of R, particularly in
FL1 and P1.
Along with the seasonal variation in hydrologic fluxes,
there is also intra-seasonal variability, depending on the avail-
ability of precipitation and the antecedent conditions for each
particular week. For instance, within the dry seasons, there is a
larger depletion of soil moisture to account for ET losses,
particularly in both types of forests, where the active root zone
is bigger. However, this behavior is not prevalent in the entire
season and other fluxes, such as Dd+A, occur in the wet
weeks. Additionally, intra-seasonal behavior also varies ac-
cording to the specific characteristic of the season, highlight-
ing the differences between the seasons in the first half of the
year with the seasons in the second half of the year.
Collectively, these observations highlight the need to consider
the interactive effects of vegetation cover and hydrologic var-
iability in multiple scales.
Fig. 7 Example of conversion of natural vegetation in early successional
stages (a) through the implementation of very intense agricultural
practices that produce significant disturbances in the soil surface (b)
and potentially alter the capacity of the ecosystem to maintain Discussion and conclusions
hydrologic regulation functions, when converted into a cropland (c)

In this work, we developed a methodology that combines


between two vegetation cover types (LS and FL). Notably, the empirical observations with a conventional water balance ap-
greatest effect of seasonality and cover occurs in ΔS/Δt, proach to assess the effects of vegetation cover type in the
where greater differences between covers and seasons occur partitioning of the water budget for multiple temporal scales
(Fig. 5). within the hydrologic year. Our results highlight the interac-
tive effects of vegetation cover and the components of the
Short-term water balance water balance, which were distinctively affected by the spe-
cific conditions of each vegetation cover type, and can vary
In our assessment of the influence of short-term hydrological among ecosystems (Nosetto et al. 2012). Notably, these dif-
variability on vegetation cover effects on hydrological ferences become more evident as the detail in the scale of
partitioning (Fig. 6), most of the atmospheric demand for wa- observation increases, suggesting a fundamental role of veg-
ter—particularly during the dry season—was supplied etation cover in hydrologic partitioning.
through soil moisture storage. This behavior is reflected in a Our analysis illustrates the effects of vegetation cover in
generalized negative change of ΔS/Δt, reaching up to almost regulating (or losing regulatory capacity) the inter-annual var-
50% of the water budget (22.9 mm), in the dry weeks of the iability of precipitation and its conversion into other
Land cover effects on water balance partitioning in the Colombian Andes: improved... (2018) 18:1117–1129 1127

hydrological fluxes and the estimated availability of moisture Our results suggest that recently abandoned pasturelands (fal-
in the soil (Wang et al. 2013). When precipitation cannot sup- low lands) provide the lowest regulatory capacity, as indicated
ply the atmospheric demand of water, soil moisture is used to by a greater proportion of evapotranspirative loss and compar-
cover the deficit, as illustrated by our seasonal and weekly atively lower soil moisture storage (Fig. 8). However, very
analyses (Huxman et al. 2004). However, our results highlight quickly after natural vegetation is recovering, early succes-
how this effect is more pronounced in the more disturbed sional states provide the highest potential for regulation of
vegetation cover types, leading to a potential loss of hydro- hydrologic partitioning, as illustrated by less variable soil
logic availability, as other fluxes (deep drainage and runoff) moisture. In general, soil water availability in agricultural eco-
are affected. This is particularly important in drier portions of systems increases as vegetation structure and density im-
the year (or drier years), when watershed stability and water proves (right portion of Fig. 8). These effects are potentially
availability depends mostly on runoff-groundwater associated with an increased capacity of altering rainfall inten-
interactions. sity (via interception) and by increasing surface resistance to
Our results suggest that hydrologic function in natural eco- runoff, potentially favoring infiltration (Bruijnzeel 2004), as
systems starts to recover very quickly after field abandonment. well as the recovery of soil physical and hydrologic properties
However, the combination of lack of policy and typical man- that favor slower water fluxes and moisture storage in the soil
agement practices in the Colombian Andes are not effective in profile. In contrast, collectively more efficient regulators of
protecting these early stages of ecological succession and only hydrologic partitioning, as well as increased rainfall intercep-
concentrate in the protection of more mature natural ecosys- tion and evapotranspiration in multi-layer canopies in taller-
tems. For instance, in our study area, and during our monitor- statured natural cover types, can comparatively decrease
ing period, a vast area of early successional vegetation (Fig. moisture availability in the soil, highlighting how early suc-
7a) was drastically transformed into a cropland (Fig. 7c), after cessional stages were more effective hydrologic regulators.
a significant disturbance from land preparation (Fig. 7b). This Notably, our results illustrate how these effects are more pro-
transformation, common in the region, highlights much need- nounced in the shorter timescales, where more intervened
ed interactions between landowners, environmental authori- cover types are less capable of maintaining soil moisture, in-
ties, and academia to effectively manage ecosystem services filtration, and deep drainage, processes that are fundamental
in the region. for maintaining water availability in river basins (Fig. 8).
Collectively, our results highlight key hydrological effects When considering the interactive effects of vegetation cov-
of vegetation cover changes such as those commonly occur- er and hydrologic partitioning within a season, soil moisture
ring in tropical mountain ecosystems. Current trends in land regulation was more effective in more natural vegetation cover
use change and conversion of natural vegetation into pastures types. This, again, is particularly noticeable in earlier succes-
and croplands (Fig. 7) affect the capacity of ecosystems to sional stages. In these cover types, not only runoff is limited,
regulate hydrologic partitioning (Bosch and Hewlett 1982). but also evapotranspiration is lower, when compared with

Fig. 8 Summary of vegetation cover effects on water balance the capacity of ecosystems to regulate hydrological function is
partitioning for a simulated gradient of anthropic intervention (from the progressively lost. We use soil moisture retention, groundwater
least to the most impacted by human intervention—left to right), as recharge, and runoff control as indicators of water regulation, all of
illustrated by our experimental results. As human intervention increases, which collectively occurring in the early successional stages (underlined)
1128 V. García-Leoz et al. (2018) 18:1117–1129

more developed natural vegetation. These effects can be ex- 2013). Field and laboratory support by A.I. Cardona, A.M. Martín, J.
Sánchez, L.I. Arango, Y.A. Vélez, C.J. Caraballo, E.J. Guana, J.S.
plained by the spatial distribution of roots (Nosetto et al.
Orozco, C. Duque and D. García.
2012), and lower radiation availability (Wang et al. 2013).
These conditions, therefore, lead to a more frequent and
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