- 1Department of Water Management, Faculty of Civil Engineering and Geosciences, Delft university of Technology, Delft, Netherlands (j.m.rudlang@tudelft.nl)
- 2Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology (Eawag), Dübendorf, Switzerland
- 3Department of Geography, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
Understanding hydrological systems is vital for addressing water-related challenges, including hydrological extremes such as floods and droughts. A complex interplay of climate and land-use changes shapes European river flow. While this interplay has been studied in specific subregions, a comprehensive analysis across continental to regional scales is yet to be unravelled.
In this study, we use the extensive European streamflow dataset, EStreams (do Nascimento et al., 2024), to investigate the relative influence of climate and landscape characteristics on streamflow behaviour across 7000 catchments.
To identify the primary drivers of streamflow behaviour, we first clustered catchments into 10 groups based solely on their hydrological signatures, deliberately excluding climate-related signatures to focus on hydrological similarity. This approach ensured that each cluster represented distinct patterns of streamflow behaviour.
Further, the drivers of these clusters were explored at both continental and regional scales. While climate emerged as the dominant driver of streamflow behaviour at the continental scale, a different pattern was observed within the clusters. By analysing regional-scale variability within each cluster, landscape characteristics—such as topography, geology, vegetation and soil properties—were found to play a larger role in shaping streamflow.
The relative contributions of climate and landscape characteristics were quantified using random forest models, applied separately to each cluster. These models revealed the relative importance of individual factors, offering insights into the nuanced controls of streamflow behaviour.
This analysis highlights three key findings. First, distinct clusters of hydrologically similar catchments can be identified across Europe using streamflow-based signatures alone. Second, climate characteristics are the primary drivers of streamflow behaviour at the continental scale. Third, dominant landscape characteristics are identifiable at the regional scale when accounting for within-cluster variability.
In conclusion, this study highlights the importance of multi-scale approaches to understanding hydrological systems. Using EStreams, a detailed perspective is offered on the interplay between climate and landscape in shaping European streamflow.
References
do Nascimento, T. V. M., Rudlang, J., Höge, M., van der Ent, R., Chappon, M., Seibert, J., Hrachowitz, M., & Fenicia, F. (2024). EStreams: An integrated dataset and catalogue of streamflow, hydro-climatic and landscape variables for Europe. Scientific Data, 11(1), 879. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41597-024-03706-1
How to cite: Rudlang, J. M., do Nascimento, T. V. M., van der Ent, R., Fenicia, F., and Hrachowitz, M.: Unravelling the Drivers: Spatial Insights into Climate and Landscape Influences on European Streamflow Behaviour, EGU General Assembly 2025, Vienna, Austria, 27 Apr–2 May 2025, EGU25-11253, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu25-11253, 2025.
