Pan-tropically, liana density increases with decreasing rainfall and increasing seasonality. This pattern has led to the hypothesis that lianas display a growth advantage over trees under dry conditions. However, the physiological mechanisms underpinning this hypothesis remain elusive. A key trait influencing leaf and plant drought tolerance is the leaf water potential at turgor loss point (πtl...

Land-use change and climate change are driving a global biodiversity crisis. Yet, how species' responses to climate change are correlated with their responses to land-use change is poorly understood. Here, we assess the linkages between climate and land-use change on birds in Neotropical forest and agriculture. Across > 300 species, we show that affiliation with drier climates is associated wit...

15 Numerical and theoretical studies have shown that mesoscale gradients in land surface properties can induce circulations in the atmosphere. This study provides the first well-resolved observations of such flows induced by soil moisture from recent rainfall, and is based on aircraft data in the Sahel. Satellite imagery was used to identify fine scale soil moisture features within a wet zone s...

We examine the relationship between hydrologic variability and the incidence of human disease associated with West Nile virus (WNV; family Flaviviridae, genus Flavivirus) infection (hereafter termed "human WN cases") in Colorado from 2002 to 2007. We find that local hydrologic conditions, as simulated by the Mosaic hydrology model, are associated with differences in human WN cases. In Colorado'...

in this paper, optimal design of hybrid solar-wind- diesel energy system with battery storage for reliable load in arsoon village in ardabil is presented. the village has 35 households that mean daily energy consumption is estimated 63.4 kwh. in this design optimization is implemented, considering loss of power supply probability (lpsp) index for reliable load providing, with minimum total cons...

Liquid and solid precipitation is abundant in the high elevation, upper reach of the Heihe River basin in northwestern China. The development of modern irrigation schemes in the middle reach of the basin is taking up an increasing share of fresh water resources, endangering the oasis and traditional irrigation systems in the lower reach. In this study, the response of vegetation in the Ejina Oa...