To provide information about ecological implications of overbank flooding and restoring hydrologic connectivity between the river and its floodplain, we are investigating how 4 flooded and 4 nonflooded sites within a 160 km stretch of the Middle Rio Grande differ ecologically.
Ecological indices of the cottonwood canopy, forest floor, soils, and groundwater were chosen to provide a picture of riparian ecosystem health. Some of these indices include: tree and shrub species composition and abundance in litterfall, carbon to nitrogen ratio in litterfall, abundance and type of ground-dwelling arthropods, soil net nitrogen mineralization, soil moisture, and groundwater levels.
Results will help us inform policy-makers on potential tools, such as instituting managed late spring/early summer floods in years with adequate water availability, to help restore the native bosque and the hydrologic connectivity between the river and its floodplain.