Scientific Investigations Report 2006–5043

U.S. GEOLOGICAL SURVEY
Scientific Investigations Report 2006–5043

Evapotranspiration by Phreatophytes Along the Lower Colorado River at Havasu National Wildlife Refuge, Arizona

By Craig L. Westenburg, Donald P. Harper, and Guy A. DeMeo

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Table of Contents

Conversion Factors, Datums, and Acronyms and Symbols

Evapotranspiration Measurement Methods and Data Collection

Evapotranspiration Rates

Modified Evapotranspiration Coefficients and Computed Evapotranspiration

Use of Colorado River Water by Phreatophytes

References Cited

Figures

Figure 1. Lower Colorado River from Hoover Dam to Mexico and study area.

Figure 2. Lower Colorado River from Davis Dam to Parker Dam, Topock Marsh study area, and phreatophyte areas.

Figure 3. Schematic of surface energy-budget components.

Figure 4. Schematic of instrumentation used to measure micrometeorological, soil, and ground-water data.

Figure 5. Daily evapotranspiration coefficients for five selected lower Colorado River Accounting System phreatophyte groups.

Figure 6. Daily evapotranspiration coefficient for Lower Colorado River Accounting System barren group.

Figure 7. Daily reference evapotranspiration for Davis Dam to Parker Dam reach of the lower Colorado River, 2002–04.

Figure 8. Monthly evapotranspiration at SC, MV, and AW stations, 2002–04.

Figure 9. Monthly evapotranspiration for six selected Lower Colorado River Accounting System phreatophyte groups, 2002–03.

Figure 10. Comparison of monthly Bowen-ratio evapotranspiration for SC, MV, and AW stations with monthly Lower Colorado River Accounting System evapotranspiration for selected Lower Colorado River Accounting System vegetation groups, June 2002–December 2003.

Figure 11. Computed daily evapotranspiration coefficients for the saltcedar (SC) station and modified coefficient curve, 2003.

Figure 12. Modified daily evapotranspiration coefficients for SC, MV, and AW stations.

Figure 13. Modified daily evapotranspiration coefficients for barren soil.

Figure 14. Computed daily and monthly evapotranspiration and Bowen-ratio evapotranspiration for saltcedar (SC) station, 2002–04.

Figure 15. Computed daily and monthly evapotranspiration and Bowen-ratio evapotranspiration for mixed-vegation (MV) station, 2002–04.

Figure 16. Computed daily and monthly evapotranspiration and Bowen-ratio evapotranspiration for arrowweed (AW) station, 2002–04.

Figure 17. Modified monthly evapotranspiration for barren soil, 2002–04.

Figure 18. Modified evapotranspiration coefficients for SC, MV, and AW stations.

Figure 19. Computed monthly evapotranspiration for SC, MV, AW stations, October 2002–September 2005.

Figure 20. Monthly Mohave area average precipitation and saltcedar (SC) computed evapotranspiration, 2002–05.

Figure 21. Adjusted monthly saltcedar (SC) station evapotranspiration, 2002–05.

Tables

Table 1. Estimated average annual evapotranspiration for different types of land cover in Ash Meadows and Oasis Valley areas, Nevada, and Death Valley, California.

Table 2. Total annual flow of the Colorado River from Hoover Dam to International Boundary, in downstream order.

Table 3. Evapotranspiration site information.

Table 4. Description of Lower Colorado River Accounting System phreatophyte groups.

Table 5. Comparison of monthly Bowen-ratio and Lower Colorado River Accounting System evapotranspiration rates, 2002–03.

Table 6. Comparison of total evapotranspiration computed with modified daily evapotranspiration coefficients and total evapotranspiration estimated with Bowen-ratio method for the saltcedar (SC), mixed- vegetation (MV), and arrowweed (AW) stations.

Table 7. Unadjusted and adjusted computed annual evapotranspiration and annual Lower Colorado River Accounting System precipitation, 2002–04.

Table 8. Water use by phreatophytes within Havasu National Wildlife Refuge, 2004.

Table 9. Average daily modified evapotranspiration coefficients for saltcedar (SC) station.

Table 10. Average daily modified evapotranspiration coefficients for mixed-vegetation (MV) station.

Table 11. Average daily modified evapotranspiration coefficients for arrowweed (AW) station.

Table 12. Average daily modified evapotranspiration coefficients for Lower Colorado River Accounting System barren group.

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