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Prairie wetlands set the pace of annual runoff
In 69% of 109 Prairie Pothole catchments, maximum wetland inundation outpredicts climate for annual runoff, often with a storage threshold.
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How large is the Prairie Pothole Region they study?
About 780,000 km² with five to eight million glacially carved wetlands.
Source: Wetlands set the pace of annual runoff in the northern Great Plains · DOI · quote verified
What observational sample did they assemble?
38 years (1984–2021) of climate and streamflow for 109 unregulated catchments.
Source: Wetlands set the pace of annual runoff in the northern Great Plains · DOI · quote verified
What fraction of catchments are fill–spill dominated?
69%, where MIWA beats climate as the runoff predictor.
Source: Wetlands set the pace of annual runoff in the northern Great Plains · DOI · quote verified
When do inundation and streamflow typically peak?
Inundation peaks April (US) or April–May (Canada); streamflow April to June after snowmelt.
Source: Wetlands set the pace of annual runoff in the northern Great Plains · DOI · quote verified
How strongly does MIWA track high-flow ratio?
Median full correlation 0.71, higher than aridity or snow persistence.
Source: Wetlands set the pace of annual runoff in the northern Great Plains · DOI · quote verified
What MIWA–ROR correlations appear in the six example catchments?
Spearman full correlations between 0.78 and 0.89.
Source: Wetlands set the pace of annual runoff in the northern Great Plains · DOI · quote verified
How common is threshold-like buffering?
64% of fill–spill catchments have power-law b > 1.25.
Source: Wetlands set the pace of annual runoff in the northern Great Plains · DOI · quote verified
How does isolated-wetland cover change the exponent b?
From 0.73% to 3.21% GIWs, b rises from 1.07 (linear) to 5.93 (highly buffered).
Source: Wetlands set the pace of annual runoff in the northern Great Plains · DOI · quote verified
What wetland-extent contrast separates buffered vs non-buffered catchments?
Median potential wetland 4.25% and ROR 0.04 versus 1.15% and 0.17.
Source: Wetlands set the pace of annual runoff in the northern Great Plains · DOI · quote verified
Does climate always explain year-to-year MIWA?
No: 40% (30) of fill–spill catchments have MIWA poorly explained by the climate indices used.
Source: Wetlands set the pace of annual runoff in the northern Great Plains · DOI · quote verified
How does climate typically affect annual runoff here?
Mostly by changing wetland inundation, which then sets connectivity.
Source: Wetlands set the pace of annual runoff in the northern Great Plains · DOI · quote verified