Novel water-use strategies of Colorado wetland plants: implications for wetland water loss

In the arid west, there is a tension between wetland restoration and water rights. Wetlands, relied upon by humans and wildlife alike, also contribute significantly to evapotranspiration (ET) due to higher water tables and dense vegetation. It is therefore critical to understand how much water wetlands lose to evaporation and transpiration, and what affects wetland water loss. This paper quantifies the transpiration of five abundant wetland species and investigates physiological mechanisms that drive transpiration rates for each species. The focal species transpire significantly different amounts at the leaf-level and when scaled to ground area. Stomatal response to environmental stimuli differed from upland stomatal responses, which suggests that wetland plants prioritize carbon uptake over hydraulic safety and do not align with current paradigms for stomatal responses to vapor pressure deficit, leaf water potential, or turgor loss point. Understanding species' stomatal responses to extreme environmental conditions is key to managing this rare and critical ecosystem as the climate changes.

Name thesis:degree_name

Master of Science (M.S.)

Level thesis:degree_level

Masters

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Ecology

Grantor dc:publisher

Colorado State University. Libraries

Year dc:date.issued

2023

Authors dc:creator

• Wright, Anna, author
• Ocheltree, Troy, advisor
• Sueltenfuss, Jeremy, advisor
• von Fischer, Joe, committee member

• stomatal conductance
• turgor loss point
• wetlands
• transpiration
• leaf water potential
• water-use

Statement dc:rights

• Copyright and other restrictions may apply. User is responsible for compliance with all applicable laws. For information about copyright law, please see https://libguides.colostate.edu/copyright.

Language dc:language.iso

eng, English

Identifier URI

https://doi.org/10.25675/3.02587

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:mountainscholar.org:10217/236862