The authors developed a parsimonious, tracer-aided forest management scenario framework using an ecohydrological model, which was designed to isolate the dominant vegetation-structural controls on long-term water partitioning. Evapotranspiration was highest under conifers, exceeding broadleaf forests and agroforestry by 7 % and 11 %. Agroforestry exhibited the greatest groundwater recharge. 

The authors used stable water isotopes to trace the origin of precipitation and are developing a new, isotope-based Evaporation and Moisture Recycling Index (iEMI). The iEMI can identify anomalous dry periods and links evaporation-driven precipitation to droughts in Europe, Africa, and Australia. This innovative index can help improve drought monitoring and optimize water management worldwide.

Shoals of sulphur mollies blanket the water surface of toxic sulphur springs in Mexico. The tiny fish survive attacks of birds through creating collective waves. New research now shows that their avian predators are adapting too, changing where they attack to avoid triggering the fish’s powerful group defence. The fish, in turn, appear to fight back with a surprising form of collective “memory.”