Walnut Gulch Experimental Watershed

View into the Walnut Gulch Experimental Watershed

Location of the Walnut Gulch Experimental Watershed, Arizona, USA

Location

Located in SE Arizona, USA surrounding the historic city of Tombstone, the 150 km² Walnut Gulch Experimental Watershed was established in the early 1950's to study the role of watershed treatments on downstream water yield. The site was deemed typical of the black grama grass-brush dominated areas of southern New Mexico and Arizona.

Catchment size

150 km²

Climate

Semiarid

Vegetation/Land use

Black grama grass-brush dominated areas

Context of investigation

The role of watershed treatments on downstream water yield

Measurements/Equipment

Precipitation since 1953

Meteorology

Runoff

Sediment transport

Soil Moisture

other Links

• USDA The Walnut Gulch Experimental Watershed
• USDA Experimental catchments
• USDA data

References

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• Emmerich, W.E., Verdugo, C.L. 2008. Long-term carbon dioxide and water flux database, Walnut Gulch Experimental Watershed, Arizona, United States. Water Resour. Res., 44, W05S09, DOI: 10.1029/2006WR005693.
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• Goodrich, D. C., Keefer, T.O., Unkrich, C.L., Nichols, M.H., Osborn, H.B., Stone, J.J., Smith, J.R., 2008. Long-term precipitation database, Walnut Gulch Experimental Watershed, Arizona, United States, Water Resour. Res., 44, W05S04, DOI: 10.1029/2006WR005782.
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• Nearing, M.A., Nichols, M.H., Stone, J.J., Renard, K.G., Simanton, J.R., 2007. Sediment yields from unit-source semiarid watersheds at Walnut Gulch. Water Resour. Res., 43(6), W06426, DOI: 10.1029/2006WR005692.
• Nichols, M.H., Nearing, M.A., Polyakov, V.O., Stone, J.J. 2013. A sediment budget for a small semiarid watershed in southeastern Arizona, USA. GEOMORPHOLOGY 180, 137-145, DOI: 10.1016/j.geomorph.2012.10.002.
• Nichols, M.H., Nearing, M., Hernandez, M., Polyakov, V.O., 2016. Monitoring channel head erosion processes in response to an artificially induced abrupt base level change using time-lapse photography. Geomorphology, 265, 107-116, DOI: 10.1016/j.geomorph.2016.05.001.
• Pelletier, J.D., Nichols, M.H., Nearing, M.A. , 2016. The influence of Holocene vegetation changes on topography and erosion rates: A case study at Walnut Gulch Experimental Watershed, Arizona. Earth Surface Dynamics, 4(2), 471-488, DOI: 10.5194/esurf-4-471-2016.
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