Wang G, J. Li , and S. Ravi (2019), A combined grazing and fire management may reverse woody shrub encroachment in desert grasslands, Landscape Ecology, doi.org/10.1007/s10980-019-00873-0 [Springer, IF: 4.5]

Fire and controlled grazing have been widely adopted as management interventions to counteract woody shrub proliferation in many arid and semiarid grassland systems. The actual intensity of grazing and fire, along with the timing of the interventions, however, are difficult to determine in practice. This study aims to establish model simulations to access the long-term landscape changes under different land management scenarios. We developed a cellular automata model to evaluate landscape dynamics in response to scenarios of grazing, fire, time of intervention, and initial coverage of grasses and shrubs.

In recognition of the positive impact in mentoring undergraduate and graduate students, Sujith Ravi awarded the Distinguished Faculty Award for Mentoring by the College of Science and Technology, Temple University.

Ravi. S., H. Gonzales*, I. Buynevich,  J. Li, J. Sankey, D. Dukes* and G. Wang (2019), On the development of a magnetic susceptibility-based tracer for  sediment transport research, Earth Surface Processes & Landforms, doi.org/10.1002/esp.4536 [Wiley, IF: 3.75]

A novel metal tracer‐based methodology for estimating aeolian sediment redistribution, using spatio‐temporal measurements of low‐field magnetic susceptibility (MS). This experiment represents the first step toward the development of a cost‐effective and non‐destructive tracer‐based approach to estimate the transport and redistribution of sediment by aeolian processes.

Bill Burger (MS) was awarded the NSF LTER summer fellowship form the Sevilleta LTER (NM) for his project on biophysical impacts of prescribed fires and their implications on grassland restoration.

Wang et al. (2018) in Ecosystems show that prescribed fire facilitates the remobilization of nutrient-enriched soil from shrub microsites to grass and bare microsites and thereby reduces the spatial heterogeneity of soil resources in a grassland encroached by shrubs in the Chihuahuan desert.

Wang*., G., J. Li,   S. Ravi, D. Dukes*, H. Gonzales*, and J. Sankey (2018), Post-fire redistribution of  soil carbon and nitrogen at a grassland-shrubland ecotone, Ecosystems, https://doi.org/10.1007/s10021-018-0260-2  [Springer, IF: 4.2]

Gonzales et al. in Ecohydrology (2018) used a computational fluid dynamics modeling approach to investigate the sediment trapping efficiencies of vegetation canopies in a grassland encroached by shrubs and related the results to spatial heterogeneity in soil texture and infiltration.

Gonzales*, H., S. Ravi, J, Li and J. Sankey (2018), Ecohydrological implications of  sediment trapping by sparse vegetation in drylands: A CFD approach, Ecohydrology, https://doi.org/10.1002/eco.1986.

https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/eco.1986

Interesting paper by Branimir (Undergraduate research assistant, BS Environmental Science 2017)

Large‐scale application of biochar has been promoted as a strategy for improving soil quality in agricultural and contaminated lands, as biochar has the potential to alter soil physical and biogeochemical properties. Biochar at different concentrations has been shown to have inconsistent effects on soil hydrological properties, yet the cause of the inconsistency is not well understood. Trifunovic et al., investigated the relative roles of biochar size and concentration on hydraulic properties of a model geomedia.

Congrats Branko ! Branimir is currently a graduate student (Department of Plant & Soil) at the University of Delaware

https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/ldr.2906

Trifunovic, B., Gonzales, H.,  S. Ravi, and B. Sharratt (2018), Dynamic effects of biochar concentration and particle size on hydraulic properties of biochar – amended sand, Land Degradation & Development, 29(4), 884-893 [Wiley, IF: 9.8]

Li & Ravi (2018) in J. Arid Environ. (Elsevier) – The grain-size distribution and the saturated hydraulic conductivity are heterogeneous for the dune-interdune system with different morphological features suggesting that the relative contributions of aeolian and hydrological processes are distinct in the evolution of nebkhas.

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0140196318301496

Li, J., and S. Ravi (2018), Interactions among hydrological-aeolian processes and vegetation determine grain-size distribution of sediments in a semi-arid coppice dune (nebkha) system, J. Arid Environments, 154, 24-33. [Elsevier, IF: 2.3]

New publication by David Dukes (MS, Geology 2018) in Journal of Geophysical Research (American Geophysical Union/Wiley) investigated the applicability of a novel tracer technique—the use of multiple rare earth elements (REE)—to quantify aeolian sediment transport and to identify sources and sinks of sediments in fire-affected landscapes. David’s study presents a first step toward developing a valuable tool to monitor the ecogeomorphic response of these landscapes to changing climate, disturbance, and management scenarios. Congrats David !

David is currently a PhD student at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign

https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/2017JG004284

Dukes, D., H. Gonzales, S. Ravi, D. Grandstaff,  J. Li, J. Sankey, G. Wang, and S. Van Pelt (2018), Quantifying post-fire aeolian sediment transport using rare earth element tracers,  J. Geophys. Res. Biogeosciences, doi:10.1002/2017JG004284. [American Geophysical Union & Wiley, IF: 3.4]

American Geophysical Union Fall meeting, New Orleans, LA, December 2017.

• Choi, C., J. Macknick and S. Ravi, Opportunities for co-location of solar PV with agriculture for cost reductions and carbon, water, and energy footprint mitigation in the tropics, American Geophysical Union Fall meeting, New Orleans, LA, December 2017.
• Cagle, A., C. S. Choi, S. Ravi , J. Macknick, and R. Bickhart, Impacts of Solar PV Arrays on Physicochemical Properties of Soil, American Geophysical Union Fall meeting, New Orleans, LA, December 2017.
• Wang, G., J. Li, S. Ravi, D. Dukes, H. Gonzales, J. Sankey and S. van Pelt, Effects of Fire on the Plant-Soil Interactions in Northern Chihuahuan Desert, American Geophysical Union Fall meeting, New Orleans, LA, December 2017.