Landscapes of change: A review of ecohydrology research in Hawaii

Abstract:

From Hawaii’s earliest pan evaporation measurements supporting the commercial sugar industry in the 1890s, to government-directed forestry efforts through the 1960s, management of Hawaii’s watersheds for recharge, streamflow, and sediment control has been implemented both with and without contributions of quantitative evidence. Much hydrological research in Hawaii has focused on the islands’ complex hydrogeology and climatology, but recent decades have witnessed an increase in ecohydrology studies and the intersection of ecophysiological methods to assist in modeling land cover impacts on watershed hydrology. We review key research efforts ranging from evapotranspiration and net precipitation studies, land cover effects on infiltration, to recent sapflow and leaf-level physiology studies that are shaping management conversations on the putative hydrological impacts of plant invasion and land use conversion. From this, we identify gaps and opportunities for ongoing and future research. For Hawaii, ecohydrology and ecophysiology offers key (and contentious) insights at the intersection of interests in conservation biology and water resource management.