Winter snowfall determines the occupancy of northern prairie wetlands by tadpoles of the Wood Frog (Lithobates sylvaticus)

2011 ◽  
Vol 89 (11) ◽  
pp. 1063-1073 ◽  
Author(s):  
David B. Donald ◽  
William T. Aitken ◽  
Carrie Paquette ◽  
Shaun S. Wulff
Keyword(s):  
Relative Abundance ◽  
Winter Precipitation ◽  
Breeding Habitat ◽  
Wood Frog ◽  
Severe Drought ◽  
Prairie Wetlands ◽  
Spring Precipitation ◽  
Lithobates Sylvaticus ◽  
Long Term Effect

In the northern plains of North America, the wetland breeding habitat of amphibians and their populations could be reduced by a change in climate that included decreased precipitation. To test this hypothesis, relative abundance of late-stage tadpoles of the Wood Frog ( Lithobates sylvaticus (LeConte, 1825)) was monitored from 1997 to 2010 during a wet–dry–wet cycle in 29 wetlands distributed throughout central Saskatchewan, Canada. The wetlands were dry for up to 7 consecutive years, and for a mean of 3.8 consecutive years. Consequently, tadpole occupancy of the wetlands was reduced to less than 40% for 5 consecutive years and none of the wetlands had tadpoles during the severe drought of 2001 and 2002. However, the drought had no observable long-term effect on either tadpole occupancy of wetlands or tadpole abundance. In 2007, 93% of the wetlands supported tadpoles, and in 2008 the highest mean relative abundance of tadpoles was recorded. Tadpole occupancy of wetlands was related to winter and spring precipitation (R2 = 0.84) with 67% of long-term variation in occupancy related to snowfall from November to February and 17% related to rainfall from March to June. Less than 45 mm of winter precipitation for 6 consecutive years would probably cause regional extinction of populations of the Wood Frog.

scholarly journals On the curious case of the recent decade, mid-spring precipitation deficit in central Europe

2020 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
M. Ionita ◽  
V. Nagavciuc ◽  
R. Kumar ◽  
O. Rakovec
Keyword(s):  
Soil Moisture ◽  
Central Europe ◽  
High Temperatures ◽  
Arctic Region ◽  
The Arctic ◽  
Severe Drought ◽  
Spring Precipitation ◽  
Pressure System ◽  
Depth Analysis

AbstractCentral Europe has experienced a severe drought almost every April for the last 14 years consecutively, driven by record high temperatures, low flows, high evapotranspiration, and high soil moisture deficit. The dynamic of this recent and recurrent mid-spring dryness is not yet understood. Here we show that the period 2007–2020 was characterized by a reduction of ~50% of the usual April rainfall amount over large areas in central Europe. The precipitation deficit and the record high temperatures were triggered by a multiyear recurrent high-pressure system centered over the North Sea and northern Germany and a decline in the temperature gradient between the Arctic region and the mid-latitudes, which diverted the Atlantic storm tracks northward. From a long-term perspective, the precipitation, temperature, and soil moisture anomalies observed over the last 14 years have reached the highest amplitudes over the observational record. Our study provides an in-depth analysis of the hydroclimate extremes in central Europe over the last 140 years and their atmospheric drivers, enabling us to increase our dynamical understating of long-term dry periods, which is vital to enhance forecasting and mitigation of such events.

scholarly journals On the curious case of the recent decade, mid-spring precipitation deficit in central Europe 

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Monica Ionita-Scholz ◽  
Viorica Nagavciuc ◽  
Rohini Kumar ◽  
Oldrich Rakovec
Keyword(s):  
Soil Moisture ◽  
Central Europe ◽  
High Temperatures ◽  
Arctic Region ◽  
The Arctic ◽  
Severe Drought ◽  
Spring Precipitation ◽  
Pressure System ◽  
Depth Analysis

<p>Central Europe has experienced a severe drought almost every April for the last 14 years consecutively, driven by record high temperatures, low flows, high evapotranspiration, and high soil moisture deficit. The dynamic of this recent and recurrent mid-spring dryness is not yet understood. Here we show that the period 2007 – 2020 was characterized by a reduction of ~50% of the usual April rainfall amount over large areas in central Europe. The precipitation deficit and the record high temperatures were triggered by a multiyear recurrent high-pressure system centered over the North Sea and northern Germany and a decline in the temperature gradient between the Arctic region and the mid-latitudes, which diverted the Atlantic storm tracks northward. From a long-term perspective, the precipitation, temperature, and soil moisture anomalies observed over the last 14 years have reached the highest amplitudes over the observational record. This study provides an in-depth analysis of the hydroclimate extremes in central Europe over the last 140 years and their atmospheric drivers, enabling us to increase our dynamical understating of long-term dry periods, which is vital to enhance forecasting and mitigation of such events.</p>

The effects of fire on behaviour and relative abundance of three lizard species in an Amazonian savanna

2004 ◽  
Vol 20 (5) ◽  
pp. 591-594 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alessandra Saraiva Faria ◽  
Albertina Pimentel Lima ◽  
William Ernest Magnusson
Keyword(s):  
Relative Abundance ◽  
Vegetation Structure ◽  
Soil Structure ◽  
Term Effect ◽  
San Jose ◽  
Lizard Species ◽  
Long Term Effect

Most savanna areas are affected by fire (San José & Fariñas 1983, Scholes & Archer 1997), and presumably all of the fauna that normally occurs in them have characteristics that allow them to maintain populations despite regular fires. Fires are frequent in Amazonian savannas and the vegetation is fire adapted. The Amazonian savanna at Alter do Chão suffers regular fires that affect vegetation structure (Sanaiotti & Magnusson 1995). Fires pass quickly in this area, the vegetation recovers most of the pre-fire cover within 6 mo, and there appears to be no long-term effect on soil structure. Trees are generally little affected by fires and they retain most of their foliage after the fire passes.

scholarly journals On the drought in the Balearic Islands during the hydrological year 2015–2016

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Climent Ramis ◽  
Romualdo Romero ◽  
Victor Homar ◽  
Sergio Alonso ◽  
Agustí Jansà ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
High Pressures ◽  
Winter Precipitation ◽  
Western Mediterranean ◽  
Balearic Islands ◽  
Severe Drought ◽  
The North ◽  
Nao Index ◽  
Olive Trees ◽  
Desalination Plants

Abstract. During the hydrological year 2015–16 (September to August) a severe drought affected the Balearic Islands, with substantial consequences (alleviated partially by desalination plants) on water availability for consumption from reservoirs and aquifers and also on the vegetation cover. In particular, a plague of Xilella fastidiosa reached a relatively alarming level for the case of the almond and olive trees. The expansion of this infestation could be attributed to, or at least favored by, the extreme drought. In this paper we analyze this anomalous episode in terms of the corresponding water balance in comparison with the balance obtained from long-term climatological data. It is shown that the drought was the result of a lack of winter precipitation, the lowest in 43 years, which led to a shortage of water storage in the soil. In several meteorological stations analyzed, evaporation was greater than precipitation during all the months of the year. In terms of attribution, it is found that during the 2015–16 winter the atmospheric circulation over the North Atlantic was largely westerly and intense, with high values of the NAO index that were reflected in high pressures over the Iberian Peninsula and the western Mediterranean.

scholarly journals On the drought in the Balearic Islands during the hydrological year 2015–2016

2017 ◽  
Vol 17 (12) ◽  
pp. 2351-2364 ◽  
Author(s):  
Climent Ramis ◽  
Romualdo Romero ◽  
Víctor Homar ◽  
Sergio Alonso ◽  
Agustí Jansà ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
High Pressures ◽  
Winter Precipitation ◽  
Western Mediterranean ◽  
Balearic Islands ◽  
Severe Drought ◽  
The North ◽  
Nao Index ◽  
Olive Trees ◽  
Desalination Plants

Abstract. During the hydrological year 2015–2016 (September to August) a severe drought affected the Balearic Islands, with substantial consequences (alleviated partially by desalination plants) on water availability for consumption from reservoirs and aquifers and also on the vegetation cover. In particular, a plague of Xylella fastidiosa reached an alarming level for almond and olive trees. The expansion of this infestation could be attributed to, or at least favored by, the extreme drought. In this paper we analyze this anomalous episode in terms of the corresponding water balance in comparison with the balance obtained from long-term climatological data. It is shown that the drought was the result of a lack of winter precipitation, the lowest in 43 years, which led to a shortage of water storage in the soil. In several meteorological stations analyzed, evaporation was greater than precipitation during all the months of the year. In terms of attribution, it is found that during the 2015–2016 winter the atmospheric circulation over the North Atlantic was largely westerly and intense, with high values of the NAO index that were reflected in high pressures over the Iberian Peninsula and the western Mediterranean.

A long-term effect of subliminally presented words

2010 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andreas T. Breuer ◽  
Michael E. J. Masson ◽  
Glen E. Bodner
Keyword(s):  
Term Effect ◽  
Long Term Effect
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