Tan et al. (2026) Hydroclimatic extremes shift GPP–ET response structures despite rising water-use efficiency in woody and herbaceous ecosystems on the Qinghai–Tibet Plateau

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Identification

• Journal: Environmental Research Letters
• Year: 2026
• Date: 2026-08-14
• Authors: Yexuan Li, Yun Zhang, Bo Wang
• DOI: 10.1088/1748-9326/ae99f5

Research Groups

• Institute of Tibetan Plateau Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences
• Key Laboratory of Alpine Ecology and Biodiversity, Qinghai University
• Department of Earth System Science, University of California, Irvine

Short Summary

This study examines the effects of hydroclimatic extremes on water-use efficiency (WUE) in woody and herbaceous ecosystems on the Qinghai–Tibet Plateau using remote-sensing and reanalysis data. The results show that WUE trends are influenced by changes in gross primary productivity (GPP) and evapotranspiration (ET), but do not necessarily indicate stronger carbon-water coupling or reduced sensitivity to hydroclimatic extremes.

Objective

• Investigate the impact of hydroclimatic extremes on water-use efficiency (WUE) in woody and herbaceous ecosystems on the Qinghai–Tibet Plateau

Study Configuration

• Spatial Scale: Regional scale, focusing on the Qinghai–Tibet Plateau
• Temporal Scale: 2001–2024, with a focus on growing-season trends and event-scale responses to extreme heat, cold, drought, and wet conditions

Methodology and Data

• Models used: Remote-sensing data (e.g., MODIS) and reanalysis data (e.g., ERA5)
• Data sources: Flux-tower evaluation at three herbaceous sites, satellite data for GPP and ET estimates

Main Results

• Growing-season WUE showed positive trends across much of the vegetated plateau, predominantly due to increased GPP.
• Woody ecosystems exhibited same-sign GPP–ET responses more frequently than herbaceous ecosystems.
• Canopy transpiration dominated woody ecosystem ET (48.7%), while soil evaporation was the largest component in herbaceous ecosystems (67.2%).
• Hydroclimatic extremes shifted statistical GPP–ET response structures and did not necessarily indicate stronger carbon-water coupling.

Contributions

This study provides new insights into the effects of hydroclimatic extremes on WUE in woody and herbaceous ecosystems, highlighting the importance of considering both GPP and ET changes when interpreting WUE trends.

Funding

• National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 91837102)
• Chinese Academy of Sciences Key Research Program (Grant No. QYZDY-SSW-DQC001)

Citation

@article{Tan2026Hydroclimatic,
  author = {Tan, Jingyi and Li, Yexuan and Zhang, Yun and Wang, Bo},
  title = {Hydroclimatic extremes shift GPP–ET response structures despite rising water-use efficiency in woody and herbaceous ecosystems on the Qinghai–Tibet Plateau},
  journal = {Environmental Research Letters},
  year = {2026},
  doi = {10.1088/1748-9326/ae99f5},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.1088/1748-9326/ae99f5}
}