Snow cover distribution in forested and deforested landscapes in New Brunswick, Canada

Snow cover distribution in two small (391 ha and 660 ha) forested watersheds in central New Brunswick, Canada was measured for an eight-year period prior to removal of 94% of the forest cover from the smaller watershed in 1978-79. Three years of subsequent measurements are analysed to determine comparisons between the forested and de-forested condition. Basin-wide snow cover was not significantly altered prior to the time of maximum snowpack, but became significantly less in the clearcut area late in the season.The most significant mid-winter effect was a reversal of the usual increase of snow depth with elevation, resulting in gradients of -5.6 to -9.9 cm/100 m at the time of maximum snow depth. This is attributed partly to the removal of interception losses from the softwood cover which predominated at lower elevatons, and partly to increased drifting which tends to favour redistribution toward lower elevations.