Disentangling influences of driving forces on intra-annual variability in sediment discharge in karst watersheds

The intra-annual variability in sediment discharge was considerably influenced by the climate variability and vegetation dynamics. Because of the coupled or relationships between climatic and vegetation variables, it is still challenging to decouple the direct and indirect effects of climate variability and vegetation dynamics on hydrological and sediment transport processes. The purpose of this study is to decouple influences of individual driving force on intra-annual distribution of sediment discharge during 2003–2017 using the partial least squares structural equation model (PLS-SEM) method in four typical karst watersheds of Southwest China. The coefficient of variation (Cv), Completely regulation coefficient (Cr), Lorenz asymmetry coefficient and Gini coefficient were used to represent the intra-annual sediment discharge variability. Results showed that the monthly sediment discharge (190 %