Journal of Hydrology最新文献

{"title":"Harmonic analysis method for hydraulic diffusivity in confined aquifers considering river resistance: An alternative to spectral analysis","authors":"Yuting Zhang ,&nbsp;Yirong Deng ,&nbsp;Meng Chen ,&nbsp;Haijian Lu ,&nbsp;Ruitong Liu ,&nbsp;Xiaoyang Liang","doi":"10.1016/j.jhydrol.2025.133279","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.jhydrol.2025.133279","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Recent methodological advancements in hydrogeological characterization have established spectral analysis as a new approach for quantifying riverbank aquifer hydraulic diffusivity. Under idealized conditions characterized by the absence of sedimentary layers at the river-aquifer interface, the power spectral differential between river and groundwater levels manifests a linear relationship with zero intercept, where the characteristic slope exhibits a direct proportionality to hydraulic diffusivity. However, the incorporation of outlet capping layer effects introduces frequency-dependent intercept terms, complicating parameter estimation due to the limitations of frequency-domain resolution and spatial data availability. This investigation introduced a Harmonic Analysis Least Squares (HALS) methodology designed to overcome these constraints. We developed a series solution to quantify the dynamic relationship between confined aquifer groundwater levels and river stages, incorporating river resistance effects on groundwater system dynamics. The proposed methodology was evaluated using field data collected from a four-well monitoring network within the Yangtze River-Honghu Lake basin. Parameter estimates derived through the HALS framework were subsequently implemented in a numerical model, enabling comparison between simulated results, field observations, and conventional spectral analysis outcomes. The HALS methodology demonstrated reliable predictive accuracy, particularly evident at Monitoring Well D, where parameter estimation yielded a river resistance of 38,136 m and hydraulic diffusivity of 8.89 × 10⁵ m²/day. Forward modeling simulations suggested optimal parameter values of 5.00 × 10⁶ m²/day for hydraulic diffusivity and 39,185 m for river resistance. Comparative analysis revealed that the HALS approach outperformed traditional Least Squares Estimation spectral methods through enhanced temporal information preservation, enabling more robust parameter estimation via optimized data utilization. This methodology addresses limitations in conventional slope-intercept approaches, particularly in single-well monitoring scenarios, while maintaining mathematical consistency with established spectral methods when outlet capping effects become negligible. This methodology can be extended to characterize permeability at lake-groundwater interfaces and inversely estimate aquifer parameters under tidal forcing condition in estuarine environments.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":362,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Hydrology","volume":"660 ","pages":"Article 133279"},"PeriodicalIF":5.9,"publicationDate":"2025-04-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143864547","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"地球科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Estimating evapotranspiration using an improved two-source energy balance model coupled with soil moisture in arid and semi-arid regions","authors":"Qiutong Zhang,&nbsp;Jinling Kong,&nbsp;Lizheng Wang,&nbsp;Yanling Zhong","doi":"10.1016/j.jhydrol.2025.133283","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.jhydrol.2025.133283","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The availability of soil moisture greatly influences the surface energy balance and evapotranspiration (ET) in arid and semi-arid regions. The soil moisture-based two-source energy balance model used the soil resistance and canopy resistance to constrain the soil evaporation and plant transpiration. However, the soil resistance is expressed as an empirical model with soil moisture, which needs to be calibrated to obtain the unknown parameters for different soil types, and the canopy resistance does not consider the influence of soil moisture. In this study, we introduced a dry soil layer (DSL) based soil resistance and an optimal stomatal conductance model (OSM) based canopy resistance, both of which are related to soil moisture, into the two-source energy balance (TSEB) model to constrain the soil evaporation (E) and plant transpiration (T). The new model (TSEB_SM) was evaluated at five sites with a wide range of soil moisture and different vegetation covers, which are located in arid and semi-arid regions. The results showed that the TSEB_SM performed better than the TSEB for LE/ET estimation, with about 20 % RMSE reduction in daily ET at irrigated cropland and alpine meadow sites, and a reduction of 31 %, 54 %, and 33 % at desert steppe, shrub forest, and forest sites, respectively. The trends of the E and T partitioned by the TSEB and TSEB_SM models followed the temporal trend of LAI, and there is generally better agreement of the E and T between the TSEB_SM model and the water use efficiency (uWUE) method. The sensitivity analysis for the resistances in the TSEB_SM model elucidated that soil resistance and canopy resistance had more noticeable effect on ET simulation, especially under soil water stressed conditions. Moreover, the results of the two models under different soil moisture conditions showed that the TSEB_SM model had a similar performance in LE/ET as the TSEB model under soil moisture sufficient conditions, but it could effectively reduce the overestimation of LE/ET by the TSEB model under water limited conditions (&lt;30 %). Finally, the uncertainty analysis of model input parameters showed that the uncertainty of soil moisture had more significant influence on the model than LAI. Combined with reliable soil moisture from remote sensing, the TSEB_SM model has important significance for monitoring evapotranspiration in arid and semi-arid regions.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":362,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Hydrology","volume":"659 ","pages":"Article 133283"},"PeriodicalIF":5.9,"publicationDate":"2025-04-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143834717","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"地球科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Impact analysis of short-term heavy rainfall on eolian sand slope stability by visualized experiments","authors":"Weihua Lu ,&nbsp;Haozhang Zheng ,&nbsp;Yuqi Song ,&nbsp;Weizheng Liu ,&nbsp;Yongxing Zhang ,&nbsp;Zixiang Xu","doi":"10.1016/j.jhydrol.2025.133284","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.jhydrol.2025.133284","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Based on our self-developed visualized experimental device, we investigated the erosion failure characteristics and mechanisms of eolian sand slopes in desert hinterlands under simulated rainfall conditions. The impact of various rainfall intensities, slope angles, and soil cover reinforcement measures on slope stability are assessed. The effectiveness of different soil cover particle sizes in mitigating erosion is also evaluated. Results indicate that rainwater infiltration significantly reduces the slope soil’s matric suction and shear strength, leading to instability and failure. Soil covers with larger particle sizes greatly reduce sediment yield and enhance slope stability under high-intensity rainfall conditions and, in specific cases, can even thoroughly prevent the formation of aeolian sand. This research provides crucial theoretical support for designing effective slope protection measures and contributes to the broader understanding of erosion dynamics in desert environments.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":362,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Hydrology","volume":"659 ","pages":"Article 133284"},"PeriodicalIF":5.9,"publicationDate":"2025-04-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143848548","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"地球科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"A novel XGBoost-based approach for reconstruction terrestrial water storage variations with GNSS in the Northeastern Tibetan Plateau","authors":"Tengxu Zhang ,&nbsp;Zhuohao Wang ,&nbsp;Liangke Huang ,&nbsp;Lin He ,&nbsp;Chaolong Yao","doi":"10.1016/j.jhydrol.2025.133255","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.jhydrol.2025.133255","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Accurately estimating terrestrial water storage (TWS) variations is essential for ensuring the sustainable management of global water resources. The Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) offers a promising approach for monitoring TWS changes with high spatial and temporal resolution. However, its application is significantly constrained by the sparse and uneven distribution of GNSS stations. In this study, we build upon traditional GNSS inversion techniques by employing the Extreme Gradient Boosting Machine Learning (XGBML) model to simulate crustal deformation caused by hydrological loading. The simulation is conducted on a <span><math><mrow><mn>0</mn><mo>.</mo><msup><mn>5</mn><mo>°</mo></msup><mo>×</mo><mn>0</mn><mo>.</mo><msup><mn>5</mn><mo>°</mo></msup></mrow></math></span> grid across the Northeastern Tibetan Plateau (NETP). This study compared TWS variations derived from the XGBML simulations and traditional inversion methods with data from the Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (GRACE) satellite and the Global Land Data Assimilation System (GLDAS). The Pearson Correlation Coefficients (PCC) between TWS changes derived from the XGBML inversion technique and those from GRACE and GLDAS data were 0.72 and 0.50, respectively, representing improvements of 8.82 % and 11.10 % compared to the conventional inversion approach. Furthermore, GNSS-DSI, GRACE-DSI, and SPEI were integrated to analyze hydrological drought events in the study area, revealing that precipitation and temperature are important drivers of hydrological drought in the NETP. These findings highlight the effectiveness of the XGBML model in simulating GNSS vertical displacements induced by hydrological loading and demonstrate its potential as a novel tool for identifying water storage variations in regions with uneven GNSS station distribution.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":362,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Hydrology","volume":"659 ","pages":"Article 133255"},"PeriodicalIF":5.9,"publicationDate":"2025-04-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143807981","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"地球科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Ignoring the pre-Darcy flow phenomenon in low permeability media may lead to great deviation in contaminant transport prediction","authors":"Hui Cheng ,&nbsp;Fugang Wang ,&nbsp;Yilong Yuan ,&nbsp;Heng Li ,&nbsp;Hailong Tian ,&nbsp;Qingcheng He","doi":"10.1016/j.jhydrol.2025.133287","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.jhydrol.2025.133287","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>This study focuses on the impact of pre-Darcy flow on solute transport in low-permeability media. Most existing studies on solute transport in low-permeability media typically neglect the effects of pre-Darcy flow and adopt Darcy’s law to describe fluid flow for simplification, which may lead to inaccurate estimations of solute transport behavior and concentration distribution. Based on experiments and numerical simulations, we evaluated the applicability of Darcy’s law in simulating solute transport in low-permeability media. The results indicate that the use of Darcy’s law overestimates solute transport rates in low-permeability media. As an alternative approach, the pre-Darcy flow model improves the agreement between simulation and experimental results. The maximum absolute percentage errors of solute concentration obtained from simulations using Darcy’s law and the pre-Darcy model are 18.22% and 6.76%, respectively. We also analyzed the effects of the nonlinearity between flow velocity and hydraulic gradient, permeability, and dispersion coefficient on solute transport. The deviation caused by Darcy’s law increases with the enhancement of velocity-hydraulic gradient nonlinearity. A decrease in permeability and dispersion coefficient also amplifies the deviation. Among these influencing factors, the nonlinearity between velocity and hydraulic gradient has the most significant impact on simulation results, followed by permeability and then dispersion coefficient. The smaller the hydraulic gradient, the greater the potential deviation caused by neglecting pre-Darcy flow. In a case study on radionuclide transport in a geological nuclear waste repository considered in this research, neglecting the pre-Darcy flow effect resulted in a maximum concentration deviation of up to 20.41% when the hydraulic gradient ranged from 1.6 to 3.3.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":362,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Hydrology","volume":"659 ","pages":"Article 133287"},"PeriodicalIF":5.9,"publicationDate":"2025-04-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143835262","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"地球科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Impact of extreme atmospheric heat events on river thermal dynamics and heatwaves","authors":"Jiang Sun ,&nbsp;Renata Graf ,&nbsp;Dariusz Wrzesiński ,&nbsp;Yi Luo ,&nbsp;Senlin Zhu ,&nbsp;Fabio Di Nunno ,&nbsp;Roohollah Noori ,&nbsp;Francesco Granata","doi":"10.1016/j.jhydrol.2025.133292","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.jhydrol.2025.133292","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Atmospheric hot temperature extremes (HTEs) can impact river water temperatures, but how HTEs affect river thermal dynamics and heatwaves is not well understood, especially at a regional scale. In this study, we used numerical modelling and field observations to quantify the contribution of HTEs to variations in river water temperatures and river heatwaves in 70 Polish rivers covering 125 gauges between 1966 and 2020. During the study time period, HTEs duration and both cumulative and maximum intensities over the studied rivers increased significantly, at average rates of 0.379 days per year, 0.582°C per year, and 0.037 °C per year, respectively. Our results showed that HTEs can accelerate river warming; despite only accounting for 4.9 % of the total days, HTEs are responsible for 25.8 %, 16.9 %, 23.7 %, 32.8 %, and 38.3 % of river warming trends at annual, spring, summer, autumn, and winter time scales. Moreover, HTEs are important drivers of both duration and severe heatwave events on the studied rivers. The results showed that though HTEs contribute to 17.8 % of the occurrence of river heatwaves, they contribute greatly (84.3 %) to the occurrence of severe heatwave events. As the first study on this topic, our findings underscore the critical role played by short-term extreme atmospheric heat events in shaping long-term river thermal dynamics.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":362,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Hydrology","volume":"659 ","pages":"Article 133292"},"PeriodicalIF":5.9,"publicationDate":"2025-04-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143822406","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"地球科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Modeling climate change effects on river ice thickness in the Northern Hemisphere","authors":"Yu Lin ,&nbsp;Karl-Erich Lindenschmidt ,&nbsp;Haishen Lü ,&nbsp;Yonghua Zhu ,&nbsp;Mingwen Liu ,&nbsp;Tingxing Chen ,&nbsp;Yingying Xu","doi":"10.1016/j.jhydrol.2025.133268","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.jhydrol.2025.133268","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>River ice is a pivotal element in cryosphere hydrology, ecology, and engineering, influencing water resource management and ecological conservation, particularly in the context of global climate change. This study employs the Stefan and Ashton equations to simulate historical river ice thickness across the Northern Hemisphere from 1972 to 2022 and assesses the effects of winter mean temperature (WMT) and winter mean snow depth (WMSD) on maximum river ice thickness (MRIT). The results indicate that the Stefan equation has good fitting performance at most stations, achieving higher accuracy in simulating river ice thickness. Although the Ashton equation generally underestimates river ice thickness, it still demonstrates excellent performance in capturing variability in certain stations. Over time, MRIT has generally declined, with most stations showing annual variation rates between 0 and 0.004 m/yr, although localized rates can reach up to 0.032 m/yr. The WMT increases at an average rate of 0.05 °C per year, and a 1 °C rise in WMT corresponds to an average reduction of 0.03 m in MRIT, according to the analysis. River ice shows increased temperature sensitivity in warmer climates. Additionally, for every 0.1 m increase in WMSD, the MRIT can decrease by up to 0.34 m. Under conditions of low temperature and snow depth, the sensitivity of MRIT to changes in snow depth is significantly higher. These insights provide a foundation for predicting future river ice trends and offer key insights for sustainable water resource and ecosystem management in cryosphere regions.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":362,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Hydrology","volume":"660 ","pages":"Article 133268"},"PeriodicalIF":5.9,"publicationDate":"2025-04-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143886905","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"地球科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Enhancing 2D hydrodynamic flood models through machine learning and urban drainage integration","authors":"Husamettin Taysi ,&nbsp;Y.C. Ethan Yang ,&nbsp;Sudershan Gangrade ,&nbsp;Taher Chegini ,&nbsp;Shih-Chieh Kao ,&nbsp;Hong-Yi Li","doi":"10.1016/j.jhydrol.2025.133258","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.jhydrol.2025.133258","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Two-dimensional hydrodynamic flood models are commonly employed for simulating flood extent and inundation depth. However, the influence of urban drainage network (UDN) is frequently overlooked in these models, potentially compromising their accuracy. Furthermore, the expensive computational costs and longer processing times make them challenging for large-scale hydrodynamic simulation. To address these challenges, this paper develops a machine learning (ML)-driven emulator for an open-source flood model, the Two-dimensional Runoff Inundation Toolkit for Operational Needs (TRITON). A TRITON-ML Emulator (TR-Emulator) that utilizes Convolutional Long Short-Term Memory is developed to capture the spatiotemporal features of flood events based on the outputs from TRITON. We further enhance the emulator by integrating UDN parameters (TR-UDN), such as the flow capacity of drainage pipes, pipe size, and pipe length, via an ML stacking technique to improve the water surface elevation (WSE) simulation. Hurricane Harvey 2017 in Houston, TX is used as the case study. We compare WSE results from TRITON, TR-Emulator, TR-UDN, and the United States Geological Survey (USGS) observations to evaluate the performance of these models. The results indicate that the TR-Emulator effectively replicates the WSE simulated by TRITON. Additionally, TR-UDN performs well in capturing WSE patterns and peak flows, aligning more closely with USGS observations, except in areas with milder slopes where conveyance discrepancies are observed. We further test the generalizability of our ML-based models using another smaller event. This paper shows that the TR-Emulator is effective for users and engineers to emulate a 2D hydrodynamic model, and the enhanced version of the TR-Emulator, TR-UDN, can be an efficient tool for predicting WSEs during urban flooding.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":362,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Hydrology","volume":"659 ","pages":"Article 133258"},"PeriodicalIF":5.9,"publicationDate":"2025-04-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143816438","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"地球科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Impact of extreme storms on the effect of soil and water conservation measures","authors":"Ge Li ,&nbsp;Jinfeng Wu ,&nbsp;Zhentao Cong ,&nbsp;Dawen Yang","doi":"10.1016/j.jhydrol.2025.133290","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.jhydrol.2025.133290","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The Loess Plateau of China has been widely concerned as the main sediment source area of the Yellow River. Soil and water conservation measures, including check dams in gully and vegetation restoration in hillslope, have been constructed on the Loess Plateau since 1950s, which have significantly reduced the sediment loads also the runoff generation. The impact of extreme storms on the effect of soil and water conservation measures in the Loess Plateau is a very important issue since the extreme storms have significantly increased in this area under climate changes. An event-based hydrological model (OpenLISEM) was used to analyze the impact of extreme storms on the effect of soil and water conservation measures in the Huangfuchuan catchment, a typical hilly-gully basin in the Loess Plateau. The results indicated that (1) an increase in rainfall intensity significantly reduces the effect of check dams and vegetation restoration. The reduction rate of SWC measures has decreased from 75% to 36% for runoff and 81% to 48% for sediment under the extreme storms with rainfall return periods from 2a to 10,000a in this catchment; (2) the runoff reduction capacity of vegetation restoration is higher than that of check dams under low-intensity extreme storms but lower under high-intensity extreme storms, while the sediment reduction capacity of vegetation restoration is always higher than that of check dams; (3) the sedimentation of check dams will increase the impact of extreme storms on check dams. The impacts of vegetation restoration and check dams on runoff and sediment will exhibit varying trends under the extreme storms, providing useful information for the assessment of these measures.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":362,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Hydrology","volume":"659 ","pages":"Article 133290"},"PeriodicalIF":5.9,"publicationDate":"2025-04-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143834619","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"地球科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"A synthesis on the spatial patterns and driving factors of water-holding capacity of forest litter layer across China","authors":"Weikang Chen ,&nbsp;Yuan Wang ,&nbsp;Xin Peng ,&nbsp;Qiqian Wu ,&nbsp;Josep Peñuelas ,&nbsp;Yan Peng ,&nbsp;Zimin Li ,&nbsp;Petr Heděnec ,&nbsp;Chaoxiang Yuan ,&nbsp;Fuzhong Wu ,&nbsp;Kai Yue","doi":"10.1016/j.jhydrol.2025.133272","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.jhydrol.2025.133272","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Forest litter layers play a crucial role in regulating hydrological processes and conserving ecosystem water, yet their spatial patterns and key drivers at regional scales remain unclear. By analyzing data from 1062 sampling sites across China using machine learning, we identified the distribution and controlling factors of forest litter mass, litter water-holding rate (LWHR), and litter water-holding amount (LWHA). Our findings reveal that (1) the mean storage of undecomposed and semi-decomposed litter was 6.2 and 10.3 t ha⁻¹, respectively, with a mean LWHR of 247.8 % and LWHA of 34.3 t ha⁻¹; (2) LWHR varied significantly among forest types, being highest in deciduous forests (285.7 %) and lowest in evergreen needleleaf forests (223.5 %); (3) LWHA was greatest in deciduous needleleaf forests (59.7 t ha⁻¹) and lowest in bamboo forests (17.4 t ha⁻¹); (4) both LWHR and LWHA decreased with latitude, indicating regional differences in litter water retention; and (5) climate and topography were the primary drivers of litter water-holding capacity, influencing litter production, accumulation, and decomposition. Our findings provide a scientific basis for forest management strategies aimed at enhancing water conservation, particularly in regions vulnerable to climate change and water shortages. The results also offer a reference for global forest ecosystems, highlighting the importance of litter layers in sustaining water resources and informing policy decisions on forest conservation and watershed management.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":362,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Hydrology","volume":"659 ","pages":"Article 133272"},"PeriodicalIF":5.9,"publicationDate":"2025-04-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143822370","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"地球科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}