Articles | Volume 22, issue 4
https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-22-995-2025
https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-22-995-2025
Reviews and syntheses
 | 
24 Feb 2025
Reviews and syntheses |  | 24 Feb 2025

Reviews and syntheses: Variable inundation across Earth's terrestrial ecosystems

James Stegen, Amy J. Burgin, Michelle H. Busch, Joshua B. Fisher, Joshua Ladau, Jenna Abrahamson, Lauren Kinsman-Costello, Li Li, Xingyuan Chen, Thibault Datry, Nate McDowell, Corianne Tatariw, Anna Braswell, Jillian M. Deines, Julia A. Guimond, Peter Regier, Kenton Rod, Edward K. P. Bam, Etienne Fluet-Chouinard, Inke Forbrich, Kristin L. Jaeger, Teri O'Meara, Tim Scheibe, Erin Seybold, Jon N. Sweetman, Jianqiu Zheng, Daniel C. Allen, Elizabeth Herndon, Beth A. Middleton, Scott Painter, Kevin Roche, Julianne Scamardo, Ross Vander Vorste, Kristin Boye, Ellen Wohl, Margaret Zimmer, Kelly Hondula, Maggi Laan, Anna Marshall, and Kaizad F. Patel

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Cited articles

Acharya, B. S., Bhandari, M., Bandini, F., Pizarro, A., Perks, M., Joshi, D. R., Wang, S., Dogwiler, T., Ray, R. L., Kharel, G., and Sharma, S.: Unmanned aerial vehicles in hydrology and water management: Applications, challenges, and perspectives, Water Resour. Res., 57, e2021WR029925, https://doi.org/10.1029/2021WR029925, 2021. 
Adams, R. K. and Spotila, J. A.: The form and function of headwater streams based on field and modeling investigations in the southern Appalachian Mountains, Earth Surf. Proc. Land., 30, 1521–1546, https://doi.org/10.1002/esp.1211, 2005. 
Adler, P. B., White, E. P., Lauenroth, W. K., Kaufman, D. M., Rassweiler, A., and Rusak, J. A.: Evidence for a General Species-Time-Area Relationship, Ecology, 86, 2032–2039, https://doi.org/10.1890/05-0067, 2005. 
Åhlén, I., Thorslund, J., Hambäck, P., Destouni, G., and Jarsjö, J.: Wetland position in the landscape: Impact on water storage and flood buffering, Ecohydrology, 15, e2458, https://doi.org/10.1002/eco.2458, 2022. 
Short summary
The loss and gain of surface water (variable inundation) are common processes across Earth. Global change shifts variable inundation dynamics, highlighting a need for unified understanding that transcends individual variably inundated ecosystems (VIEs). We review the literature, highlight challenges, and emphasize opportunities to generate transferable knowledge by viewing VIEs through a common lens. We aim to inspire the emergence of a cross-VIE community based on a proposed continuum approach.
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