Variation of Dry Days Since Last Rain (DDSLR) as a measure of dryness along a Mediterranean – Arid transect

Dry periods between rainstorms control the soil moisture conditions, and are the antecedent conditions for various geomorphological, hydrological and ecological processes. An annual distribution of dry condition, based on the Dry Days Since Last Rain (DDSLR) approach is presented, showing the durati...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of arid environments 2009-06, Vol.73 (6), p.658-665
Main Authors: Aviad, Y., Kutiel, H., Lavee, H.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Animal and plant ecology
Animal, plant and microbial ecology
Antecedent conditions
arid lands
Biological and medical sciences
Climatic transect
Daily rainfall threshold (DRT)
dry environmental conditions
Dryness
Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology
geomorphology
Israel
Mediterranean climate
plant ecology
probability analysis
rain
Synecology
temporal variation
Terrestrial ecosystems
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Summary:Dry periods between rainstorms control the soil moisture conditions, and are the antecedent conditions for various geomorphological, hydrological and ecological processes. An annual distribution of dry condition, based on the Dry Days Since Last Rain (DDSLR) approach is presented, showing the duration and timing of dry periods for various daily rainfall thresholds and probabilities. Daily rainfall data from five stations along a climatic transect in Israel, extending from the Judean Mountains, which have a Mediterranean climate, to the Dead Sea arid region were studied. The results show that DDSLR values increased with increasing aridity. At a 0.1 mm rainfall threshold, the DDSLR values were similar along this transect. However, at higher daily thresholds, differences among different locations along the transect, become more noticeable.
ISSN:0140-1963
1095-922X
DOI:10.1016/j.jaridenv.2009.01.012