Concurrent drought threaten wheat and maize production and widen crop yield gaps in the future

CONTEXT

Drought poses a significant threat to global crop production. As the global community grapples with the escalating challenges of climate change, understanding the multifaceted impacts of concurrent drought on food security becomes imperative.

OBJECTIVE

This study delved into the response of wheat and maize, key staples in the global food system, to different types of drought, with a particular focus on the yield gaps resulting from concurrent meteorological and agricultural drought.

METHODS

The DSSAT-CERES model was adopted to simulate phenophase, rain-fed, and potential yields of maize and wheat in China from 1962 to 2100. Meteorological (Non-stationary Standard Precipitation Evapotranspiration Index, NSPEI) and agricultural (Standard Soil Moisture Index, SSMI) drought indices were calculated from crop seeding to maturity stages. We employed bivariate and multiple cross-wavelet as well as vine Copula to qualitatively and quantitatively analyze the response of yield gaps to different drought types. Finally, we determined the relative dependence weights of maize and wheat on NSPEI and SSMI by least squares regression.

RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS

Spanning from 2022 to 2100, a trend of shortened growth periods for these crops were detected, accompanied by increasingly drier conditions. These situations exacerbated the crops' vulnerability to concurrent drought, leading to considerable yield reductions. Our projections indicated that future yield gaps due to concurrent drought could be, on average, 2–30% higher than those caused by single-type drought. Concurrent drought affected wheat (5–50%) more severely than maize (0–35%). Western regions would be more affected than the Eastern regions. Under the SSP (Shared socioeconomic pathway) 5-8.5 scenario in 2022–2100, all four crops would have higher dependence weights on SSMI (51–99%) than NSPEI (26–59%), emphasizing the critical role of soil moisture in agricultural drought monitoring and yield loss alleviation.

SIGNIFICANCE

Our findings highlight the urgent need for integrated drought management strategies that address the compounded risks of concurrent drought, thereby contributing to the resilience of agricultural systems and global food security in a changing climate. Our research proposes to consider the relative weights of meteorological and agricultural drought in the future development of composite drought monitoring indicators for addressing food drought risk under climate change.