Der Wasserhaushalt der Nebelwälder im Schutzgebiet 'Bilsa' (Ecuador) und das Wiederaufforstungspotential angrenzender Weideflächen
type: CreativeWork
description: When wind-driven fog meets an obstacle under favourable conditions, coagulation of droplets can result in a rain-like event, known by meteorologists as fog drip. Its ecological significance, however, is still subject of controversial discussion. If at all mentioned in the description of an ecosystem, fog drip would mostly be considered a relevant factor for epiphyte growth only, although some authors found amounts of fog drip as high as or even exceeding those of rain. Furthermore, it has not yet been investigated if plant design could have an influence on the individual fog drip efficiency – although it seems reasonable to assume that certain above-ground structures such as leaf shape or branch architecture have a significant impact. Within this complex, three aspects are being studied: a) A quantification of water flows in a cloud forest; b) Precipitation development of a reforestation plot in a foggy environment; c) Morphological characteristics that affect the fog drip efficiency of plants. Meteorological and hydrological data were collected over a one year period in a lower montane cloud forest of coastal Ecuador. Results are presented in a ´Klimadiagramm´ and a schematic flow chart. Precipitation at the investigated site was 900 mm of fog drip and 1925 mm of rain. Considering the fact that more than 90% of the fog drip was precipitated during the dry season, fog drip is identified as the main ecological factor for the region to sustain evergreen forests. From October 1999 until September 2000 precipitation and growth have been monitored at a reforestation plot. These measurements have shown that at a height of approximately 100 cm a process of self irrigation of the young trees sets in on fog events, resulting in considerably good conditions for reforestation in a region that so far has been described insufficiently in terms of its meteorological characteristics. In the discussion, fog drip is re-evaluated as an ecological factor for environments that experien…
abstract: When wind-driven fog meets an obstacle under favourable conditions, coagulation of droplets can result in a rain-like event, known by meteorologists as fog drip. Its ecological significance, however, is still subject of controversial discussion. If at all mentioned in the description of an ecosystem, fog drip would mostly be considered a relevant factor for epiphyte growth only, although some authors found amounts of fog drip as high as or even exceeding those of rain. Furthermore, it has not yet been investigated if plant design could have an influence on the individual fog drip efficiency – although it seems reasonable to assume that certain above-ground structures such as leaf shape or branch architecture have a significant impact. Within this complex, three aspects are being studied: a) A quantification of water flows in a cloud forest; b) Precipitation development of a reforestation plot in a foggy environment; c) Morphological characteristics that affect the fog drip efficiency of plants. Meteorological and hydrological data were collected over a one year period in a lower montane cloud forest of coastal Ecuador. Results are presented in a ´Klimadiagramm´ and a schematic flow chart. Precipitation at the investigated site was 900 mm of fog drip and 1925 mm of rain. Considering the fact that more than 90% of the fog drip was precipitated during the dry season, fog drip is identified as the main ecological factor for the region to sustain evergreen forests. From October 1999 until September 2000 precipitation and growth have been monitored at a reforestation plot. These measurements have shown that at a height of approximately 100 cm a process of self irrigation of the young trees sets in on fog events, resulting in considerably good conditions for reforestation in a region that so far has been described insufficiently in terms of its meteorological characteristics. In the discussion, fog drip is re-evaluated as an ecological factor for environments that experien…
author: Tiedemann, Kai
language: ger
keywords: info:eu-repo/classification/ddc/570, Biowissenschaften, Biologie, Mache-Chindul Nationalpark, Nebelwald, Wasserhaushalt, Klima
date published: 2001
date modified: 2026-07-30T19:43:19Z
provider: RWTH Aachen University
publisher: Networked Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations
type: WebPage
source organization: Publikationsserver der RWTH Aachen University