Water Resources Research Act Program

Details for Project ID 2003MT9B

Topography, groundwater dynamics, and soil frost: First-order controls on snowmelt runoff dynamics and plant species distributions across an uplandwetland transition

Institute: Montana
Year Established: 2003 Start Date: 2003-05-01 End Date: 2005-02-28
Total Federal Funds: $72,880 Total Non-Federal Funds: $149,635

Principal Investigators: Brian McGlynn, Richard Sojda

Project Summary: The interrelationship between hydrology, topography, frost depth, and the distribution of wetland plant species is poorly understood. We seek to elucidate the first-order controls on snowmelt flow pathways, frost depth, and plant species distributions across an uplandwetland transition as a first step toward conceptual model development and investigation of snowmelt flowpaths and hydro-ecologic dynamics at the landscape scale. The transition zone between uplands and wetlands or riparian zones is a key landscape zone due to dynamic groundwater levels and vegetation. We propose to investigate the controls on frost depth and its relationship to hydrologic flowpaths during snowmelt, the partitioning of old and new water in runoff, and soil moisture/groundwater recharge. In addition, we propose to investigate the variables controlling plant species distribution across an upland to wetland transition. We have observed six to eight plant species zones from the upland grassland to the wetland complex. The hydrological dynamics and plant species distributions appear tightly linked at Red Rocks Lake and in the Centennial Valley, making this an ideal site for new investigation in the emerging field of hydro-ecology.