Drought Impact on Desert Ecosystems, Drought Network precipitation manipulation experiment in desert grasslands

Climate change amplifies the global water cycle, making droughts more frequent and more severe. The hot deserts of the U.S. rely on the stability and frequency of water availability in order to sustain biological communities, making these ecosystems incredibly vulnerable to anticipated alterations in the water cycle. This project seeks to understand which biotic and abiotic variables are principle in determining desert ecosystem sensitivity to drought? To answer these questions, we have installed a drought manipulation that will simulate an extreme drought event by reducing annual precipitation by 66% in seven desert sites. Plant abundance data are collected annually to track changes in the plant community. Data collection began in Spring 2018. Treatments at three Sevilleta sites began in Fall 2018 after data collection in October 2018. Treatments started at four sites in Arizona and California in March and April of 2019 and spring pretreatment data collection. The treatments will last for four years.