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Relationships between Riparian Vegetation Pattern and the Hydraulic Characteristics of Upslope Runoff

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  • Qinghe Zhao

    (Key Laboratory of Geospatial Technology for the Middle and Lower Yellow River Regions (Henan University), Ministry of Education, Kaifeng 475004, China
    College of Environment and Planning, Henan University, Kaifeng 475004, China)

  • Yifan Zhang

    (Key Laboratory of Geospatial Technology for the Middle and Lower Yellow River Regions (Henan University), Ministry of Education, Kaifeng 475004, China
    College of Environment and Planning, Henan University, Kaifeng 475004, China)

  • Shanshan Xu

    (Key Laboratory of Geospatial Technology for the Middle and Lower Yellow River Regions (Henan University), Ministry of Education, Kaifeng 475004, China
    College of Environment and Planning, Henan University, Kaifeng 475004, China)

  • Xiaoyu Ji

    (Key Laboratory of Geospatial Technology for the Middle and Lower Yellow River Regions (Henan University), Ministry of Education, Kaifeng 475004, China
    College of Environment and Planning, Henan University, Kaifeng 475004, China)

  • Shuoqian Wang

    (Key Laboratory of Geospatial Technology for the Middle and Lower Yellow River Regions (Henan University), Ministry of Education, Kaifeng 475004, China
    College of Environment and Planning, Henan University, Kaifeng 475004, China)

  • Shengyan Ding

    (Key Laboratory of Geospatial Technology for the Middle and Lower Yellow River Regions (Henan University), Ministry of Education, Kaifeng 475004, China
    College of Environment and Planning, Henan University, Kaifeng 475004, China)

Abstract

Riparian vegetation plays a vital role in inhibiting soil and water loss, but few studies have quantified the relationships between vegetation spatial pattern and the hydraulic characteristics of upslope runoff. This study investigated how hydraulic characteristics (e.g., runoff coefficient, flow regime, flow resistance, and flow shear stress of overland flow) responded to differences in vegetation cover (15% and 30%), slope gradient (5°, 10°, 15°, and 20°), and vegetation pattern in the riparian zone along the lower Yellow River, China, based on landscape pattern analysis and a runoff scouring experiment with flow rates of 9 and 15 L/min and an experimental plot size of 1 m × 3 m. We found that runoff generation on shallow slopes was moderated by increasing vegetation cover, but that this moderating effect decreased on steeper slopes. The regime of overland flow switched from laminar and subcritical on the 5° slope ( Fr = 0.56–0.87) to laminar and critical on the 10°, 15°, and 20° slopes ( Fr = 1.02–2.18). Flow resistance increased with vegetation cover and flow rate and decreased with slope gradients, and it was larger on shallow slopes with high vegetation cover. Flow shear stress had a range of 1.42–3.55 N m −2 , and it increased with increasing slope gradient, vegetation cover, and flow rate. The hydraulic characteristics of upslope runoff, especially flow resistance, were significantly related to vegetation pattern at both the landscape and class levels. Flow resistance was negatively related to patch density, and positively related to perimeter–area fractal dimension and connectance index. The influencing mechanism of landscape patterns on soil erosion processes is dependent on the landscape scale, since the relationships between flow resistance and some landscape pattern indices (aggregation index, effective mesh size, and splitting index) were opposite at the landscape level compared to the class level. We conclude that fragmented vegetation distributions reduce flow resistance, and that riparian vegetation could be managed to inhibit slope erosion by increasing flow resistance.

Suggested Citation

  • Qinghe Zhao & Yifan Zhang & Shanshan Xu & Xiaoyu Ji & Shuoqian Wang & Shengyan Ding, 2019. "Relationships between Riparian Vegetation Pattern and the Hydraulic Characteristics of Upslope Runoff," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(10), pages 1-16, May.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:11:y:2019:i:10:p:2966-:d:234031
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Xia Zhang & Guo Yu & Zhan Li & Peng Li, 2014. "Experimental Study on Slope Runoff, Erosion and Sediment under Different Vegetation Types," Water Resources Management: An International Journal, Published for the European Water Resources Association (EWRA), Springer;European Water Resources Association (EWRA), vol. 28(9), pages 2415-2433, July.
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    Cited by:

    1. Shengchun Tong & Guorong Li & Xilai Li & Jinfang Li & Hui Zhai & Jianyun Zhao & Haili Zhu & Yabin Liu & Wenting Chen & Xiasong Hu, 2023. "Soil Water Erosion and Its Hydrodynamic Characteristics in Degraded Bald Patches of Alpine Meadows in the Yellow River Source Area, Western China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(10), pages 1-20, May.
    2. Ruiwen Peng & Han Deng & Ruoshuang Li & Yiqiu Li & Guangbin Yang & Ou Deng, 2022. "Plot-Scale Runoff Generation and Sediment Loss on Different Forest and Other Land Floors at a Karst Yellow Soil Region in Southwest China," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(1), pages 1-15, December.
    3. Zhu, Zhizhuo & Li, Long & Zhang, Shangxuan & Zhang, Peng & Ren, Yanan & Zhang, Yu, 2024. "Dynamic simulation study of soil erosion intensity on slopes with different vegetation patterns in pisha sandstone area," Ecological Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 491(C).
    4. Raül Oorthuis & Jean Vaunat & Marcel Hürlimann & Antonio Lloret & José Moya & Càrol Puig-Polo & Alessandro Fraccica, 2020. "Slope Orientation and Vegetation Effects on Soil Thermo-Hydraulic Behavior. An Experimental Study," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(1), pages 1-13, December.

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