- 1Istituto di Ricerca per la Protezione Idrogeologica (IRPI), Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, Perugia, Italy
- 2Dipartimento di Fisica e Geologia, Università degli Studi di Perugia, Italy
- 3Dipartimento di Scienze e Ingegneria della Materia, dell’Ambiente ed Urbanistica (SIMAU) , Università Politecnica delle Marche, Ancona, Italy
- 4CIMA Research Foundation, Savona, Italy
- 5Dipartimento di Scienze e Tecnologie Ambientali Biologiche e Farmaceutiche (DISTABiF), Università degli Studi della Campania Luigi Vanvitelli, Caserta, Italy
- 6Istituto di Ricerca sulle Acque (IRSA), Consiglio Nazioale delle Ricerche, Roma Italy
- 7Dipartimento di Chimica, Biologia e Biotecnologie, Università degli Studi di Perugia, Perugia, Italy
- 8Istituto di Scienze Polari, Consiglio Nazioale delle Ricerche, Venezia, Italy
- 9Forest Engineering Resources and Management Department, Oregon State University, Corvallis, USA
- 10Dipartimento di Scienze e Tecnologie Agrarie, Alimentari Ambientali e Forestali (DAGRI), Università degli Studi di Firenze (UNIFI), Firenze, Italy
Mediterranean mountainous basins play a vital role in supplying water and supporting ecosystem services. However, these environments are increasingly threatened by climate change. Recent studies reveal that mountainous catchments in the Mediterranean region, which experienced substantial snow accumulation from 1970 to 1990, are now facing reduced snow levels and faster snowmelt since 2000. These changes can significantly affect the seasonality and volume of runoff and groundwater recharge as well as changes in vegetation phenology. Given the expected drier and warmer Mediterranean region the implications for these cathcments remain poorly understood.
This study explores the eco-hydrological implications of reduced snow accumulation using ground observations from a newly established catchment: Ussita (18 km²), a tributary of the Nera River located in the Apennines within the Monti Sibillini National Park, Central Italy. We analyzed two contrasting hydrological years—2022-2023, which featured substantial winter snow accumulation (up to 300 cm at high elevations) and a hot summer, and 2023-2024, which has thus far recorded a severe snow drought with less than 30 cm at the same locations.
The experimental setup includes an array of instruments: pressure transducers for river and groundwater levels, electrical conductivity meters, soil moisture probes, throughfall collectors, tree talkers, and a weather station. Additionally, stable water isotope data from precipitation, groundwater, soil, and surface water were used to trace water sources across hydrological compartments.
Preliminary results, using these collected data complemented with remote sensing observations of evaporation and gross primary productivity, highlight shifts in runoff seasonality and a faster runoff decline as well as anticipation of the growing season with an anticipation of the decline of soil moisture levels thus underscoring the significant impacts of snow droughts on eco-hydrological dynamics of this cathcment. Ongoing analysis aims to deepen our understanding of these eco-hydrological changes and their broader implications for the region.
How to cite: Massari, C., Dionigi, M., Donnini, M., Di Matteo, L., Fronzi, D., Avanzi, F., Battipaglia, G., Preziosi, E., Cappelletti, D., Spolaor, A., Segura, C., and Penna, D.: Eco-hydrological insights from a snow drought in a Mediterranean mountainous catchment in Central Italy, EGU General Assembly 2025, Vienna, Austria, 27 Apr–2 May 2025, EGU25-17507, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu25-17507, 2025.
