The biomechanics of leaf oscillations during rainfall events

Abstract

Plants are dynamic systems during rainfall events. As raindrops splash on leaf surfaces, the momentum of the raindrop is transferred to the leaf, causing the leaf to oscillate. The emphasis of this review is on the general principles of leaf oscillation models after raindrop impact and the ecological importance. Various leaf oscillation models and the underlying physical properties from biomechanics theory are highlighted. Additionally, we review experimental methods to derive the model parameters for and explore advances in our understanding of the raindrop-leaf impact process.

Keywords: Leaf biomechanics; leaf inclination angle; leaf oscillations; leaf vibrations; raindrop impact; rainfall interception.