Field data collection and analysis of canopy and litter interception in commercial forest plantations in the KwaZulu-Natal Midlands, South Africa

Abstract

It is well accepted that the total evaporation in forested areas is greater than in grasslands, largely due to the differences in the amount of rainfall that is intercepted by the forest canopy and litter and due to higher transpiration rates. However, interception is the least studied of these components of the hydrological cycle. The study aims to measure and quantify the canopy and litter interception by <i>Eucalyptus grandis</i>, <i>Pinus patula</i> and <i>Acacia mearnsii</i>, at the Two Streams research catchment in the KwaZulu-Natal Midlands of South Africa for the three-year period April 2008 to March 2011. The results from this study showed that canopy and litter interception contributed a significant amount of the water evaporated in a forest water balance. The canopy interception by <i>E. grandis</i>, <i>A. mearnsii</i> and <i>P. patula</i> was 14.9%, 27.7% and 21.4% of gross precipitation, respectively, while litter interception was 8.5%, 6.6% and 12.1% of gross precipitation, respectively.