Influences of synoptic situation and teleconnections on fog-water collection in the Mediterranean Iberian Peninsula, 2003-2012

Fog-water collection has been widely analysed for its quantification and potential uses; however, there are few studies assessing the synoptic conditions and largescale teleconnection patterns that affect its occurrence. Focusing on the Mediterranean Iberian Peninsula, this work aims to analyse the synoptic patterns, both at surface level and 850 hPa geopotential height, that most likely to favour fogwater collection, and to quantify the relationship between fog-water collection and the NAOi (North Atlantic Oscillation index), MOi (Mediterranean Oscillation index) as well as WeMOi (Western Mediterranean Oscillation index) teleconnection patterns. For this purpose, daily fog-water observations from a dense network of 23 fog-water collectors located along the Mediterranean Iberian Peninsula for 2003-2012 were analysed in relation to synoptic patterns and the threeteleconnection indices. The major findings are: (a) The most favourable synoptic patterns for fog-water collection are maritime advections carrying humidity from the Mediterranean basin, and cyclonic circulations, whereas anti-cyclonic situations generally led to large number of foggy days with low fog-collection rates. (b) In terms of winds at 850 hPa, the most favourable low-level flows for fogwater collection are associated with strong winds (>5.1 m s−1) from theMediterranean. Atlantic winds generally cause a greater number of fog days than Mediterranean winds, with less fog-water collection rates. (c) WeMOi has the greatest influence on fog-water collection, mainly during winter and spring months, with statistically significant negative relationships for most of the stations. MOi also shows a great influence, with a large number of statistically significant negative correlations, mainly during the same months as WeMOi. Lastly, NAOi presented the lowest and no significant negative correlations with fog-water collection

La influencia del clima en la variacion espacial del pinar de Tenerife (I.Canárias)

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Influences of synoptic situation and teleconnections on fog-water collection in the Mediterranean Iberian Peninsula, 2003–2012

Fog-water collection has been widely analysed for its quantification and potential uses; however, there are few studies assessing the synoptic conditions and large-scale teleconnection patterns that affect its occurrence. Focusing on the Mediterranean Iberian Peninsula, this work aims to analyse the synoptic patterns, both at surface level and 850 hPa geopotential height, that most likely to favour fog-water collection, and to quantify the relationship between fog-water collection and the NAOi (North Atlantic Oscillation index), MOi (Mediterranean Oscillation index) as well as WeMOi (Western Mediterranean Oscillation index) teleconnection patterns. For this purpose, daily fog-water observations from a dense network of 23 fog-water collectors located along the Mediterranean Iberian Peninsula for 2003–2012 were analysed in relation to synoptic patterns and the three-teleconnection indices. The major findings are: (a) The most favourable synoptic patterns for fog-water collection are maritime advections carrying humidity from the Mediterranean basin, and cyclonic circulations, whereas anti-cyclonic situations generally led to large number of foggy days with low fog-collection rates. (b) In terms of winds at 850 hPa, the most favourable low-level flows for fog-water collection are associated with strong winds (>5.1 m s) from the Mediterranean. Atlantic winds generally cause a greater number of fog days than Mediterranean winds, with less fog-water collection rates. (c) WeMOi has the greatest influence on fog-water collection, mainly during winter and spring months, with statistically significant negative relationships for most of the stations. MOi also shows a great influence, with a large number of statistically significant negative correlations, mainly during the same months as WeMOi. Lastly, NAOi presented the lowest and no significant negative correlations with fog-water collection.This study has been funded by the Spanish Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad and the European Regional Development Fund (FEDER) through the project CGL2015‐64268‐R (MINECO/FEDER, UE). For this study, the Fundación CEAM was partly supported by Generalitat Valenciana and research projects “DESESTRES” PROMETEOII/2014/038 (Consellería de Cultura) and “VERSUS” CGL2015‐67466‐R (MINECO/FEDER)

Variation in species composition and vegetation structure of succulent scrub on Tenerife in relation to environmental variation

On Tenerife, the occurrence of environmental gradients over short distances provides a unique opportunity to investigate the relationship between vegetation and environmental factors. In the semi-arid coastal region of Tenerife, floristic composition, species richness and vegetation structure of perennial plants have been studied in 67 locations covering the existing precipitation gradient. On the island as a whole, variation in species composition could be best explained by mean annual precipitation; at coastal sites, substrate age and soil characteristics also played a significant role. On the other hand, substrate chemistry and the type of eruptive material explained little of the floristic variation. Stand biomass was strongly correlated with mean annual precipitation and was, on the youngest lava flows studied, also affected by substrate age. The native stem succulent species made up the bulk of total biomass along the whole precipitation gradient. Disturbed and undisturbed sites differed significantly in stand biomass and cover. Species richness was correlated with precipitation and substrate age. Distribution of plant functional types was also related to the precipitation gradient. The relative abundance of hemicryptophytes and shrubs with non-hairy leaves increased with increasing precipitation whereas the ratio of shrubs with hairy/ non-hairy leaves and succulent plants decreased. Some alien plants were quite frequent at disturbed sites but, on the whole, they contributed little to the species spectrum and to the stand biomass. Undisturbed sites remained almost free of introduced species not considering annuals