Rapid Estimation of Soil Erosion Rate from Exhumed Roots (Xiaolong Mts, China)

Abstract

Soil erosion is a challenge worldwide, including in China. The dendrogeomorphic method was applied, for the first time, at Xiaolong Mts in Gansu Province to obtain a quantitative estimate of the soil erosion rate. The dataset built in this pilot study allowed the identification of exhumation texture in exposed roots between 1967 and 2002. The calculated mean erosion rate estimates (Era) ranged from 2.6 to 16.5 mm yr−1 and showed an increase with the slope steepness (s). The best fitting linear model (Era = 0.043(±0.017) × s + 3.09(±1.04); R² = 0.20; R²adj = 0.16; F = 6.18; p = 0.02) could be used in future research to determine and to map soil denudation in this part of the Xiaolong Mts. Notable associations were found between erosive rainfalls and root exhumation events. Daily (Rx1day) and 5-day (Rx5day) precipitation totals of 56 and 73 mm, respectively, seem to be critical thresholds which if exceeded will always induce root exhumation in the same year or in the consecutive season in the forest of the Xiaolong Mts in the studied period.

Keywords

• dendrogeomorphology
• erosion rate
• tree roots
• wood anatomy
• China