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  1. Feb 2025 Journal Article Open Journal of Ecology

    Estimation of Aboveground Biomass of Acacia Trees in the Hyper-Arid Arava, Israel Using Allometric Analysis—Allometric Equations for Acacia Trees in the Desert

    Gidon Winters, Casey Alexander, Thanh Hoai Tran, Giorgio Matteucci, Elli Groner
    Abstract

    Biomass is among the most important state variables used to characterize ecosystems. Estimation of tree biomass involves the development of species-specific “allometric equations” that describe the relationship between tree biomass and tree diameter and/or height. While many allometric equations were developed for northern hemisphere and tropical species, rarely have

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  2. 29 Nov 2024 Journal Article Ecohydrology

    How Perennials Survive the Droughts—Pulse–Reserve Dynamics in a Hyperarid Basin

    Avshalom Babad, O Bubenzer, S Hecht, Elli Groner
    Abstract

    The hyperarid environment poses significant challenges to local vegetation. The main limiting factors are water scarcity and inconsistent precipitation regimes. Nevertheless, perennials flourish in hyperarid stream channels, predominantly acacia trees, which require significant amounts of water. This study seeks to reveal the mechanism that provides acacias with adequate

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  3. 21 Sep 2023 Journal Article Journal of Insect Conservation

    Can microhabitat preferences of ground-dwelling insects be a good indicator for terrestrial ecosystem recovery after an oil spill?

    Nitzan Segev, Elli Groner, Amos Bouskila, O Berger-Tal
    Abstract

    Despite the significant global impact of oil spills on the environment, little is known about the effects of oil spills on animals in terrestrial ecosystems, particularly in desert environments. In contaminated areas, habitat selection can be a crucial behavior determining individuals survival as well as a potential indicator of an ecosystem’s condition. This is especially

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  4. Jun 2023 Journal Article Ecosphere

    Toward an extreme world: The hyper-arid ecosystem as a natural model

    Abstract

    The forecasted increased frequency and intensity of extreme climatic events may strongly affect ecosystem structure and function in the future. It is unclear how ecosystems will function in the long run over a large spatial scale under a new extreme water cycle. This open question calls for a conceptual framework as a fundamental basis for theoretical and experimental

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  5. 1 May 2023 Journal Article Urban Climate

    Do urban tree hydraulics limit their transpirational cooling? A comparison between temperate and hot arid climates

    Limor Shashua-Bar, Mohammad A Rahman, Astrid Moser-Reischl, Aviva Peeters, Eleonora Franceschi, Hans Pretzsch, Thomas Rötzer, Stephan Pauleit, Gidon Winters, Elli Groner, Shabtai Cohen
    Abstract

    Evaporative cooling due to transpiration of urban trees in two contrasting climates is the subject of this study. Transpiration was studied experimentally on local tree species at ‘tree lab’ sites in Munich, Germany (temperate climate) and in Beer Sheva, Israel (hot arid climate), within various settings (park, street, square) with natural and sealed surface conditions

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  6. 14 Jul 2021 Journal Article Frontiers in Forests and Global Change

    Effects of climate and atmospheric nitrogen deposition on early to mid-term stage litter decomposition across biomes

    TaeOh Kwon, Hideaki Shibata, Sebastian Kepfer-Rojas, Inger Kappel Schmidt, Klaus Steenberg Larsen, Claus Beier, Björn Berg, Kris Verheyen, Jean-Francois Lamarque, Frank Hagedorn, Nico Eisenhauer, Ika Djukic, ... show all 14 authors
    Abstract

    Litter decomposition is a key process for carbon and nutrient cycling in terrestrial ecosystems and is mainly controlled by environmental conditions, substrate quantity and quality as well as microbial community abundance and composition. In particular, the effects of climate and atmospheric nitrogen (N) deposition on litter decomposition and its temporal dynamics are

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  7. 5 Jul 2021 Journal Article Applied Sciences

    Asynchrony Drives Plant and Animal Community Stability in Mediterranean Coastal Dunes

    Tania L F Bird, Pua Bar (Kutiel), Elli Groner, Amos Bouskila
    Abstract

    Substantial evidence now suggests that a positive diversity–stability relationship exists. Yet few studies examine the facets of biodiversity that contribute to this relationship, and empirical research is predominantly conducted on grassland communities under controlled conditions. We investigate the roles of species richness, environmental condition (vegetation cover)

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  8. Jul 2021 Journal Article Journal of Insect Science

    The Impact of Roads on the Redistribution of Plants and Associated Arthropods in a Hyper-Arid Ecosystem

    Shahar Cohen, Elli Groner, Aviva Peeters, Michal Segoli
    Abstract

    The construction of vehicular roads likely affects the distribution of natural resources. Although the effects of roads on different ecosystem aspects have been extensively studied, studies in arid and, particularly, in hyper-arid ecosystems are scarce. In drylands, where water is the main limiting factor, the effect of roads on the redistribution of water may have

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  9. Jun 2021 Journal Article Journal of Arid Land

    An arthropod community beyond the dry limit of plant life

    Benjamin Davidson, Elli Groner
    Abstract

    Water availability, which enables plant growth and animal activity, regulates dryland ecosystem function. In hyper-arid ecosystems, rain cannot support vascular plant growth. Therefore, hyper-arid vegetation is restricted to the lower topography, where runoff accumulates. Typically, food resources originating from areas of dense vegetation are dispersed across the desert

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  10. Feb 2021 Journal Article Journal of Plant Ecology

    Unexpectedly low δ 13C in leaves, branches, stems and roots of three acacia species growing in hyper-arid environments

    Daphna Klein Tamir Winters Uni, Elli Groner, Elaine Soloway, Amgad Hjazin, Spencer Johnswick, Gidon Winters, Efrat Sheffer, Ido Rog, Yael Wagner, Tamir Klein
    Abstract

    In plant eco-physiology, less negative (enriched) carbon 13 (13C) in the leaves indicates conditions of reducing leaf gas exchange through stomata, e.g. under drought. In addition, 13C is expected to be less negative in non-photosynthetic tissues as compared with leaves. However, these relationships in δ 13C from leaves (photosynthetic organs) to branches, stems and

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