The comparative importance of overland runoff and mean annual rainfall to shrub communities of the Mojave Desert [California]

The density, biomass, and pattern of shrubs on a desert piedmont in southern California were measured in a series of plots from which sheet- flow and stream-channel runoff from adjacent mountains have been excluded for 45 yr. The plots were compared with undisturbed adjacent areas in which soil mois...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Botanical gazette (Chicago, Ill.) Ill.), 1984-03, Vol.145 (1), p.116-124
Main Authors: Schlesinger, W.H, Jones, C.S
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Ambrosia
Animal and plant ecology
Animal, plant and microbial ecology
Bajadas
Biological and medical sciences
Biomass
Density
Deserts
Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology
Rain
Shrubs
Sloping terrain
Soil water
Stormwater
Synecology
Terrestrial ecosystems
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Summary:The density, biomass, and pattern of shrubs on a desert piedmont in southern California were measured in a series of plots from which sheet- flow and stream-channel runoff from adjacent mountains have been excluded for 45 yr. The plots were compared with undisturbed adjacent areas in which soil moisture is derived from both runoff and incident precipitation. Lorrea tridentata and Ambrosia dumosa showed significantly lower density in areas of drainage diversion. There were no differences in mean shrub biomass for A. dumosa, but in areas of drainage diversion, mortality of L. tridentata was concentrated among larger individuals. The remaining population of smaller shrubs showed a more aggregated pattern than the population in undisturbed sites. Biomass per hectare was lower for both species in areas of drainage diversion. Desert shrub communities depend on soil moisture recharge during periods of overland runoff. Sources of runoff are important to consider in studies of competition and pattern of desert shrubs.
ISSN:0006-8071
1940-1205
DOI:10.1086/337434