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Chapter 1: Introduction

Chapter 1: Introduction

pp. 1-15

Authors

, Princeton University, New Jersey, , Nanjing University, China
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Summary

Ecohydrology is the study of the two-way interaction between the hydrological cycle and ecosystems. More broadly, it is the science of the linkages between life and water on Earth. On the one hand, the space and time variability of the hydrological cycle controls the water availability for ecosystems; on the other hand, ecosystems, especially through transpiration by vegetation, control the main pathway by which water returns to the atmosphere from land. The terrestrial water cycle also drives some of the dynamics of soil organic matter (SOM), microbial biomass, and the related nutrient cycling. These in turn not only affect the vegetation dynamics but also impact the hydraulic and thermodynamic properties of soil, thereby directly acting on the partitioning of water and energy fluxes at the land–atmosphere interface.

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