Understanding Spatial and Temporal Drivers of Stream Intermittency and Connectivity in Urban River Networks

Understanding Spatial and Temporal Drivers of Stream Intermittency and Connectivity in Urban River Networks | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Article Understanding Spatial and Temporal Drivers of Stream Intermittency and Connectivity in Urban River Networks Joaquina Noriega Giménez, Edwin Saavedra Cifuentes, Anna Vincent, and 1 more This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-7419292/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Under Review Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract Urban development transforms catchment hydrology, disrupting natural flows and complicating stormwater management. Hydrological alteration and climate change are making urban systems drier and increasingly intermittent, yet highly modified, low-gradient river networks remain poorly understood, limiting effective, context-specific strategies. We investigated how urban land cover, subsurface characteristics, and antecedent weather influence ephemeral stream dynamics to identify the drivers of urban intermittency and strengthen sustainable water management. Contrary to expectations, tributaries with less impervious cover were more intermittent due to enhanced infiltration in permeable soils and paleo-sand deposits, underscoring the role of subsurface conditions in stream connectivity. Active drainage length correlated with antecedent rainfall and effective precipitation over 1–60 days, peaking at six days, indicating that stream expansion reflects hydrologic accumulation more than immediate runoff. These findings show that hydrometeorological and subsurface conditions jointly control urban stream connectivity, offering a stronger foundation for better understanding driving processes and building urban watershed resilience. Earth and environmental sciences/Hydrology Earth and environmental sciences/Ecology/Urban ecology Earth and environmental sciences/Environmental social sciences/Environmental impact Earth and environmental sciences/Ecology/Freshwater ecology urban hydrology ephemeral streams connectivity dynamics Full Text Additional Declarations There is NO Competing Interest. Cite Share Download PDF Status: Under Review Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. 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Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-7419292","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":507432282,"identity":"a0b780e1-24df-47b3-bef4-d8b5901609f5","order_by":0,"name":"Joaquina Noriega Giménez","email":"data:image/png;base64,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","orcid":"","institution":"Northwestern University","correspondingAuthor":true,"prefix":"","firstName":"Joaquina","middleName":"Noriega","lastName":"Giménez","suffix":""},{"id":507432283,"identity":"09834345-f826-43c1-aa9e-b558e01ad6fe","order_by":1,"name":"Edwin Saavedra Cifuentes","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Northwestern University","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Edwin","middleName":"Saavedra","lastName":"Cifuentes","suffix":""},{"id":507432284,"identity":"f4c593d3-3ada-460a-b80c-fb3af6aeccb2","order_by":2,"name":"Anna Vincent","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Northwestern University","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Anna","middleName":"","lastName":"Vincent","suffix":""},{"id":507432285,"identity":"085fcf02-489f-41f0-9dd5-d1449943da1f","order_by":3,"name":"Aaron Packman","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Northwestern University","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Aaron","middleName":"","lastName":"Packman","suffix":""}],"badges":[],"createdAt":"2025-08-20 16:21:13","currentVersionCode":1,"declarations":"","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-7419292/v1","doiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-7419292/v1","draftVersion":[],"editorialEvents":[],"editorialNote":"","failedWorkflow":false,"files":[{"id":100358195,"identity":"66875d2e-2f99-495f-a099-884e963a9b12","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2026-01-16 07:20:43","extension":"pdf","order_by":1,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"manuscript-pdf","size":2711958,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"Article File","description":"","filename":"NATWATER251885UnderstandingSpatialandTemporalDriversofStreamIntermittencyandConnectivityinUrbanRiverNetworks.pdf","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-7419292/v1_covered_638a3740-d478-4409-9bb7-3e8b54b8cd6e.pdf"}],"financialInterests":"There is \u003cb\u003eNO\u003c/b\u003e Competing Interest.","formattedTitle":"Understanding Spatial and Temporal Drivers of Stream Intermittency and Connectivity in Urban River Networks","fulltext":[],"fulltextSource":"","fullText":"","funders":[],"hasAdminPriorityOnWorkflow":false,"hasManuscriptDocX":false,"hasOptedInToPreprint":true,"hasPassedJournalQc":"","hasAnyPriority":true,"hideJournal":false,"highlight":"","institution":"","isAcceptedByJournal":true,"isAuthorSuppliedPdf":true,"isDeskRejected":"","isHiddenFromSearch":false,"isInQc":false,"isInWorkflow":false,"isPdf":true,"isPdfUpToDate":true,"isWithdrawnOrRetracted":false,"journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"nature-portfolio","isNatureJournal":true,"hasQc":false,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"externalIdentity":"","sideBox":"","snPcode":"","submissionUrl":"","title":"Nature Portfolio","twitterHandle":"","acdcEnabled":false,"dfaEnabled":false,"editorialSystem":"ejp","reportingPortfolio":"","inReviewEnabled":true,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":false},"keywords":"urban hydrology, ephemeral streams, connectivity dynamics","lastPublishedDoi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-7419292/v1","lastPublishedDoiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-7419292/v1","license":{"name":"CC BY 4.0","url":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/"},"manuscriptAbstract":"Urban development transforms catchment hydrology, disrupting natural flows and complicating stormwater management. Hydrological alteration and climate change are making urban systems drier and increasingly intermittent, yet highly modified, low-gradient river networks remain poorly understood, limiting effective, context-specific strategies. We investigated how urban land cover, subsurface characteristics, and antecedent weather influence ephemeral stream dynamics to identify the drivers of urban intermittency and strengthen sustainable water management. Contrary to expectations, tributaries with less impervious cover were more intermittent due to enhanced infiltration in permeable soils and paleo-sand deposits, underscoring the role of subsurface conditions in stream connectivity. Active drainage length correlated with antecedent rainfall and effective precipitation over 1–60 days, peaking at six days, indicating that stream expansion reflects hydrologic accumulation more than immediate runoff. 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