Distribution of soil taxa in Antarctica: A preliminary analy
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TitleDistribution of soil taxa in Antarctica: A preliminary analysisAbstractOnly 0.35% (49,500km2) of Antarctica is ice-free. These areas are scattered around the periphery of the continent and in interior mountain ranges, making soil mapping difficult. Here we compile the results of mapping in five of the nine ice-free areas that account for 79% of the ice-free area on a reconnaissance scale and interpret the distribution of soil subgroups in Soil Taxonomy. Soils of Antarctica are contained in four orders, dominantly Gelisols (84%), 13 suborders, 27 great groups, and 76 subgroups. Forty-five percent of the soils of Antarctica are Orthels, Gelisols that show minimal cryoturbation and occur in dry landscape positions; 38% of the soils are Turbels showing cryoturbation and occurring in more moist landscape positions. Only 16% of the soils of Antarctica lack permafrost in the control section and are classified as Entisols (Gel-great groups), Inceptisols (Gelepts suborder or Gelaquepts), or Histosols (Gel-great groups). These soils occur almost exclusively along the western Antarctic Peninsula and at elevations below 30m in the South Shetland Islands (SSI) and South Orkney Islands (SOI). Typic Anhyorthels are the dominant soil subgroup comprising nearly 15,340km2, or 31% of the soils in Antarctica. These soils occur primarily in central and southern Victoria Land, but also occur in the Thiel and Pensacola Mountains and Shackleton Range, the Prince Charles Mountains, and the mountains of Queen Maud Land. Typic Haploturbels and Typic Anhyturbels occupy 14 and 13% of the soils of ice-free regions of Antarctica, respectively. Most abundant in central Victoria Land, they are common in most mountainous regions of Antarctica. The dominant soil processes of maritime Antarctica are cryoturbation, gleization, melanization, podzolization, paludization, and phosphatization. In coastal East Antarctica, the major soil processes are rubification, salinization, calcification, pervection, and gleization. The predominant soil-forming processes in the Transantarctic Mountains include rubification, salinization, desert pavement formation, and permafrost development. Measures of pedodiversity will be valuable in the selection of protected areas in Antarctica. â"' 2015 Elsevier B.V.AcknowledgementsThis project was supported by national grants to study soils in Antarctica, including the National Science Foundation and the US Antarctic Program; the New Zealand Foundation for Research, Science and Technology and the New Zealand Antarctic Programme; the National Council for Scientific and Technological Development and the Brazilian Antarctic Program; the Russian Foundation for Basic Research and the Russian Antarctic Expedition, and the Australian and Polish Antarctic Programs (MB).
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1st AuthorBockheim, J.AuthorBockheim, J.Lupachev, A.Blume, H.-P.Bölter, M.Simas, F.McLeod, M.Year2015JournalGeodermaVolume245-246Pages104-111DOI10.1016/j.geoderma.2015.01.017URLhttps://www.scopus.com/inward/recor.....f9937aedf42fe9620dd10c3e2KeywordsBiomineralizationConservationIceLandformsMappingPermafrost, AntarcticaMountainous regionsPreliminary analysisSoil classificationSoil forming processSoil mappingSouth Shetland IslandsWestern Antarctic Peninsula, Soils, cryoturbationgeological mappingpedologypermafrostsoil classificationsoil sciencesoil surveysoil type, Antarctica, rank5Author KeywordsAntarcticaSoil classificationSoil mappingProgrammeK123 - Environmental Protection of Antarctic Soils
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TypeArticleCitationBockheim, J., Lupachev, A., Blume, H.-P., Bölter, M., Simas, F. and McLeod, M. (2015). Distribution of soil taxa in Antarctica: A preliminary analysis. Geoderma, 245-246: 104-111 IdentifierBockheim2015bRelevancerank5
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McLeod, M., Distribution of soil taxa in Antarctica: A preliminary analy , [Bockheim2015b]. Antarctica NZ, accessed 17/05/2025, https://adam.antarcticanz.govt.nz/nodes/view/63401, 10.1016/j.geoderma.2015.01.017