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Heterogeneity in vegetation recovery rates post-flash droughts across different ecosystems

Lu, Mengge LU ; Sun, Huaiwei ; Cheng, Lei ; Li, Siyue ; Qin, Hui ; Yi, Shanzhen ; Zhang, Hong and Zhang, Wenxin LU orcid (2024) In Environmental Research Letters 19(7).
Abstract

Flash droughts, as sub-seasonal phenomena, are characterized by their rapid onset and significant impact on terrestrial ecosystems. However, understanding how vegetation responds to flash droughts and the mechanisms governing vegetation recovery remains elusive. Here, we analysed the response of vegetation productivity to flash droughts and identified the most relevant drivers controlling vegetation recovery using two soil moisture datasets (ERA5-land and Global Land Data Assimilation System) and two satellite-based vegetation productivity proxies (gross primary productivity, and solar-induced chlorophyll fluorescence). Our results show that South China and Northeast China stand out as hotspots for flash droughts, with higher frequency... (More)

Flash droughts, as sub-seasonal phenomena, are characterized by their rapid onset and significant impact on terrestrial ecosystems. However, understanding how vegetation responds to flash droughts and the mechanisms governing vegetation recovery remains elusive. Here, we analysed the response of vegetation productivity to flash droughts and identified the most relevant drivers controlling vegetation recovery using two soil moisture datasets (ERA5-land and Global Land Data Assimilation System) and two satellite-based vegetation productivity proxies (gross primary productivity, and solar-induced chlorophyll fluorescence). Our results show that South China and Northeast China stand out as hotspots for flash droughts, with higher frequency and speed. Notably, although the frequency of flash droughts in cropland is relatively low, and their speed is very high, with a median of 10.9% per pentad. Most ecosystems can recover to their normal state within 25 d. Vegetation with shallow roots, such as cropland and grassland, responds rapidly to flash droughts. Ecosystems generally exhibit extended response time with increasing plant rooting depth. The recovery rate of vegetation productivity from flash droughts is mainly controlled by vegetation physiology (decline rate of productivity upon exposure to flash drought) and modulated by flash drought characteristics, especially severity for forests and speed for cropland and grassland. This study provides valuable insights into the mechanisms underlying vegetation responses to flash droughts.

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author
; ; ; ; ; ; and
organization
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
keywords
drought recovery, flash drought, gross primary productivity, rooting depth, soil moisture
in
Environmental Research Letters
volume
19
issue
7
article number
074028
publisher
IOP Publishing
external identifiers
  • scopus:85196367347
ISSN
1748-9326
DOI
10.1088/1748-9326/ad5570
language
English
LU publication?
yes
additional info
Publisher Copyright: © 2024 The Author(s). Published by IOP Publishing Ltd.
id
d1b64901-015b-439e-9423-7bdc540d5791
date added to LUP
2024-06-28 23:14:05
date last changed
2024-08-29 13:26:25
@article{d1b64901-015b-439e-9423-7bdc540d5791,
  abstract     = {{<p>Flash droughts, as sub-seasonal phenomena, are characterized by their rapid onset and significant impact on terrestrial ecosystems. However, understanding how vegetation responds to flash droughts and the mechanisms governing vegetation recovery remains elusive. Here, we analysed the response of vegetation productivity to flash droughts and identified the most relevant drivers controlling vegetation recovery using two soil moisture datasets (ERA5-land and Global Land Data Assimilation System) and two satellite-based vegetation productivity proxies (gross primary productivity, and solar-induced chlorophyll fluorescence). Our results show that South China and Northeast China stand out as hotspots for flash droughts, with higher frequency and speed. Notably, although the frequency of flash droughts in cropland is relatively low, and their speed is very high, with a median of 10.9% per pentad. Most ecosystems can recover to their normal state within 25 d. Vegetation with shallow roots, such as cropland and grassland, responds rapidly to flash droughts. Ecosystems generally exhibit extended response time with increasing plant rooting depth. The recovery rate of vegetation productivity from flash droughts is mainly controlled by vegetation physiology (decline rate of productivity upon exposure to flash drought) and modulated by flash drought characteristics, especially severity for forests and speed for cropland and grassland. This study provides valuable insights into the mechanisms underlying vegetation responses to flash droughts.</p>}},
  author       = {{Lu, Mengge and Sun, Huaiwei and Cheng, Lei and Li, Siyue and Qin, Hui and Yi, Shanzhen and Zhang, Hong and Zhang, Wenxin}},
  issn         = {{1748-9326}},
  keywords     = {{drought recovery; flash drought; gross primary productivity; rooting depth; soil moisture}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  month        = {{07}},
  number       = {{7}},
  publisher    = {{IOP Publishing}},
  series       = {{Environmental Research Letters}},
  title        = {{Heterogeneity in vegetation recovery rates post-flash droughts across different ecosystems}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1088/1748-9326/ad5570}},
  doi          = {{10.1088/1748-9326/ad5570}},
  volume       = {{19}},
  year         = {{2024}},
}