Evaporative demand across a range of microsites in partial-cut boreal forests
Relative rates of evaporative demand were measured across a range of microsites in partial-cut boreal mixed-wood forests in northern Alberta using atmometers (evaporimeters); evaporation was measured by water loss from porous ceramic cones. The atmometers provided a consistent index of evaporative demand, i.e. a measure of water loss from a moist surface, when compared to potential evapotranspiration calculated from meteorological data collected at the study sites. The average evaporative demand at 2 m height was similar in two different patterns of partial harvest, but these were intermediate between that of nearby uncut forests and clear-cut harvests. There were differences in evaporative demand between 5 m wide extraction trails and adjacent partial-harvested areas. Rates of evaporative demand were related to small-scale spatial differences in basal area of the residual trees. This study demonstrates that these inexpensive instruments are suitable for replicated measurements of relative evaporative demand across a variety of forest habitats.
Keywords: Atmospheric moisture demand; Picea glauca; boreal mixed wood; evaporative demand; evaporimeter; potential evapotranspiration; understorey evaporation
Document Type: Research Article
Affiliations: School of Forest Science and Management, Department of Renewable Resources, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
Publication date: 01 April 2010
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