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D'Odorico ,
Paolo 		Research Interests

Associate Professor. Ph.D., University of Padua (Italy), 1998.

Ecohydrology, surface hydrology, stochastic modelling of hydrologic processes, soil moisture dynamics, soil erosion.

Old Clark Hall, #207
434 924 7241
paolo@virginia.edu

My research focuses on the understanding and modeling of the hydrological processes that determine the temporal and spatial dynamics of soil moisture at different scales. In particular I am presently studying how these dynamics affect the soil nutrient budget, the occurrence of water stress in vegetation, the coupling between the land surface and the overlying atmosphere, the soil susceptibility to wind erosion and the stability of hillslopes and colluvial deposits.

In these analyses I use a process-based, probabilistic approach to develop simple mechanistic models, which are then tested against data. These models offer a quantitative framework to study non-linearity and feedbacks embedded in the dynamics. They also show to which extent and in which conditions hydrologic processes have an impact on soils, vegetation, and near-surface atmosphere.

This research offers the possibility to establish a number of interactions and collaborations with students and colleagues working in ecology, land surface processes, and climatology.

Homepage : http://www.people.Virginia.EDU/~pd6v/


Selected Recent Publications

DeLonge, M., P. D'Odorico, and D. Lawrence,. Feedbacks between phosphorous deposition and canopy cover: the emergence of multiple states in dry tropical forests, Global Change Biology, 14 (1), 154-160. doi:10.1111/j.1365-2486.2007.01470.x, 2008.

Lawrence, D., P. D'Odorico, L. Diekmann, M. DeLonge, R. Das and J. Eaton, Ecological feedbacks following deforestation create the potential for a catastrophic ecosystem shift in tropical dry forest, Proc. Natnl Acad. Sci, USA, PNAS, vol. 104, no. 52, 20696-20701, 2007.

Ravi, S., P. D'Odorico, and G.S. Okin, Hydrologic and aeolian controls on vegetation patterns in arid landscapes, Geophys. Res. Lett., 34, L24S23, doi:10.1029/2007GL031023, 2007.

D'Odorico, P., K. Caylor, G. S. Okin, and T M. Scanlon, On soil moisture-vegetation feedbacks and their possible effects on the dynamics of dryland ecosystems, J. Geophys. Res., 112, G04010, doi:10.1029/2006JG000379. 2007.

Ravi, S. P. D'Odorico, T.M. Zobeck, T.M Over, and S. Collins. Feedbacks between fires and wind erosion in heterogeneous arid lands, J. Geophys Res. (Biogeosciences), 112, G04007, doi:10.1029/2007JG000474.2007.

Rodriguez-Iturbe, I., P. D'Odorico, F. Laio. L. Ridolfi, and S. Tamea, Challenges in wetland ecohydrology: interactions of water table and unsaturated zone with climate, soil, and vegetation, Water Resour Res., 43, W09301, doi:10.1029/2007WR006073, 2007.

D'Odorico, P. , F. Laio, and Ridolfi, L., A probabilistic analysis of fire-induced tree-grass coexistence in savannas, American Naturalist, 167(3), E79-E87, 2006.

D'Odorico, P., F. Laio and L. Ridolfi, Vegetation patterns induced by random climate fluctuations, Geophys. Res. Lett., 33, L19404, doi:10.1029/2006GL027499, 2006.

D'Odorico P. F. Laio, and L. Ridolfi, Noise-induced stability in dryland plant ecosystems, Proc. Natnl. Acad. Sci. USA, 102(31), 10819-10822, 2005.

Porporato A. and P. D'Odorico, Phase Transitions Driven by State-Dependent Poisson Noise, Phys. Rev. Lett., 92(11), 110601, 2004. Clim 14:4230-4242.

D'Odorico, P. and A. Porporato, Preferential states in soil moisture and climate dynamics, Proc. Natnl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A., 101: 8848-8851, 10.1073/pnas.0401428101, 2004.

Environmental Sciences Department
291 McCormick Rd
Charlottesville, Virginia
(434) 924-7761
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