Burba, G: Water, Light and Energy in Ecosystems

Water, light, and heat are essential for ecosystem functioning. Transformations of these components by key parts of an ecosystem, such as soil and vegetated canopy, and complex exchange between the latter and the lower portion of the atmosphere are often described in terms of energy and radiation fluxes. In this book, the seasonal and interannual exchange of water and energy, and light penetration and absorption are studied for the specific case of fluxes and efficiencies of native grassland and cultivated wheat ecosystems, and examined in terms of main controlling variables, such as solar radiation, soil moisture, leaf area, canopy development stage, etc. Evapotranspiration model of Priestley and Taylor is modified to incorporate these effects, leading to a substantial improvement in water loss prediction. New approach to determine periods of vegetation activity is developed based on photosynthetically active radiation albedo and green foliage area index. This study helps to improve our understanding of ecosystem exchange and use of its key non-carbon resources, and should be useful to professionals in Natural and Ecosystem Sciences, and in Natural Resources management.