Articles | Volume 26, issue 22
https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-26-5773-2022
https://doi.org/10.5194/hess-26-5773-2022
Research article
 | 
16 Nov 2022
Research article |  | 16 Nov 2022

The effect of rainfall amount and timing on annual transpiration in a grazed savanna grassland

Matti Räsänen, Mika Aurela, Ville Vakkari, Johan P. Beukes, Juha-Pekka Tuovinen, Pieter G. Van Zyl, Miroslav Josipovic, Stefan J. Siebert, Tuomas Laurila, Markku Kulmala, Lauri Laakso, Janne Rinne, Ram Oren, and Gabriel Katul

Related authors

Carbon dioxide and methane fluxes from mounds of African fungus-growing termites
Matti Räsänen, Risto Vesala, Petri Rönnholm, Laura Arppe, Petra Manninen, Markus Jylhä, Jouko Rikkinen, Petri Pellikka, and Janne Rinne
Biogeosciences, 20, 4029–4042, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-20-4029-2023,https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-20-4029-2023, 2023
Short summary
Seasonal and diurnal variations in biogenic volatile organic compounds in highland and lowland ecosystems in southern Kenya
Yang Liu, Simon Schallhart, Ditte Taipale, Toni Tykkä, Matti Räsänen, Lutz Merbold, Heidi Hellén, and Petri Pellikka
Atmos. Chem. Phys., 21, 14761–14787, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-14761-2021,https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-21-14761-2021, 2021
Short summary

Cited articles

Archibald, S. and Scholes, R. J.: Leaf green-up in a semi-arid African savanna – separating tree and grass responses to environmental cues, J. Veg. Sci., 18, 583–594, https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1654-1103.2007.tb02572.x, 2007. 
Aurela, M., Lohila, A., Tuovinen, J.-P., Hatakka, J., Riutta, T., and Laurila, T.: Carbon dioxide exchange on a northern boreal fen, Boreal Environ. Res., 14, 699–710, 2009. 
Barnes, R. D., Fagg, C. W., and Milton, S. J.: Acacia Erioloba: Monograph and Annotated Bibliography, Oxford Forestry Institute, University of Oxford, https://ora.ox.ac.uk/objects/uuid:9f260e92-d72d-4fff-988d-5ef95e716f94 (last access: 15 November 2022), 1997. 
Bengtsson, J., Bullock, J. M., Egoh, B., Everson, C., Everson, T., O'Connor, T., O'Farrell, P. J., Smith, H. G., and Lindborg, R.: Grasslands – more important for ecosystem services than you might think, Ecosphere, 10, e02582, https://doi.org/10.1002/ecs2.2582, 2019. 
Download
Short summary
The productivity of semiarid grazed grasslands is linked to the variation in rainfall and transpiration. By combining carbon dioxide and water flux measurements, we show that the annual transpiration is nearly constant during wet years while grasses react quickly to dry spells and drought, which reduce transpiration. The planning of annual grazing strategies could consider the early-season rainfall frequency that was linked to the portion of annual transpiration.
Share