Critical thresholds for nonlinear responses of ecosystem water use efficiency to drought
Publikation: Bidrag til tidsskrift › Tidsskriftartikel › Forskning › fagfællebedømt
Standard
Critical thresholds for nonlinear responses of ecosystem water use efficiency to drought. / Hu, Ying; Wei, Fangli; Wang, Shuai; Zhang, Wenmin; Fensholt, Rasmus; Xiao, Xiangming; Fu, Bojie.
I: Science of the Total Environment, Bind 918, 170713, 2024.Publikation: Bidrag til tidsskrift › Tidsskriftartikel › Forskning › fagfællebedømt
Harvard
APA
Vancouver
Author
Bibtex
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
T1 - Critical thresholds for nonlinear responses of ecosystem water use efficiency to drought
AU - Hu, Ying
AU - Wei, Fangli
AU - Wang, Shuai
AU - Zhang, Wenmin
AU - Fensholt, Rasmus
AU - Xiao, Xiangming
AU - Fu, Bojie
N1 - Publisher Copyright: © 2024
PY - 2024
Y1 - 2024
N2 - Climate change is expected to lead to greater variability in precipitation and drought in different regions. However, the responses of ecosystem carbon and water cycles (i.e., water use efficiency, WUE) to different levels of drought stress are not fully understood. Here, we examined the relationship between WUE and precipitation anomalies and identified the critical drought threshold (DrCW) above which WUE showed substantial decrease. The results revealed that 85.56 % of the study area had nonlinear WUE responses to drought stress; that is, the WUE decreased sustainably and steeply when the precipitation deficit exceeded the DrCW. DrCW indicates inflection points for changing ecosystem responses from relatively resistant to vulnerable to drought stress, thus providing an instructive early warning for intensifying suppressive impacts on vegetation growth. Additionally, DrCW varies across aridity gradients and among vegetation types. Based on the DrCW at the pixel level, the future eco-drought is projected to increase in >67 % of the study area under both the SSP2&RCP4.5 and SSP5&RCP8.5 scenarios by the end of the 21st century. Our study elucidates the response of the ecosystem function to drought and supports the development of accurate ecosystem adaptation policies for future drought stress.
AB - Climate change is expected to lead to greater variability in precipitation and drought in different regions. However, the responses of ecosystem carbon and water cycles (i.e., water use efficiency, WUE) to different levels of drought stress are not fully understood. Here, we examined the relationship between WUE and precipitation anomalies and identified the critical drought threshold (DrCW) above which WUE showed substantial decrease. The results revealed that 85.56 % of the study area had nonlinear WUE responses to drought stress; that is, the WUE decreased sustainably and steeply when the precipitation deficit exceeded the DrCW. DrCW indicates inflection points for changing ecosystem responses from relatively resistant to vulnerable to drought stress, thus providing an instructive early warning for intensifying suppressive impacts on vegetation growth. Additionally, DrCW varies across aridity gradients and among vegetation types. Based on the DrCW at the pixel level, the future eco-drought is projected to increase in >67 % of the study area under both the SSP2&RCP4.5 and SSP5&RCP8.5 scenarios by the end of the 21st century. Our study elucidates the response of the ecosystem function to drought and supports the development of accurate ecosystem adaptation policies for future drought stress.
KW - Critical thresholds
KW - Drought
KW - Ecological risks
KW - Response trajectory
KW - Water use efficiency
U2 - 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2024.170713
DO - 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2024.170713
M3 - Journal article
C2 - 38325460
AN - SCOPUS:85184842533
VL - 918
JO - Science of the Total Environment
JF - Science of the Total Environment
SN - 0048-9697
M1 - 170713
ER -
ID: 390179774