Geomorphic-vegetation relationships using a geopedological classification system, northern Chihuahuan Desert, USA

Abstract

a b s t r a c tDrylands typically have distinctive vegetative patterns that reflect the underlying physical landscape. We use a geopedological classification to organize the landscape into five categories from broad scale to fine scale: (1) physiographic divisions which describe regional topography, such as mountains and basin floors; (2) regolith type which identifies residuum versus transported sediments; (3) parent materials which describe mineralogy; (4) landforms which provide meso-scale descriptions of topography; and (5) soil texture, a fine-scale variable important for infiltration, erodibility, and available water holding capacity. The study was conducted in a 1753 km 2 area of the White Sands Missile Range and easternmost Jornada Experimental Range and revealed the following.(1) At the broadest scale, mesquite is dominant on the basin floor when the parent material is siliceous sand, but (2) biological soil crust becomes dominant in the basin floor when the parent material is gypseous. (3) Creosotebush is dominant on rocky soils of the piedmont slopes regardless of parent material, but (4) grasslands become dominant on the bajadas upslope in the semiarid zone and into the semiarid mountain uplands regardless of bedrock type. This method provides a way of supplementing ecologic-edaphic studies and provides a framework within which mechanisms can be explored.

Spatial distribution of biological soil crusts on the slope of the Chinese Loess Plateau based on canonical correspondence analysis

“…It should be noted that soil has multiple effects on BSCs (Michaud et al, 2013;Wu et al, 2003;Zhao et al, 2006). Topsoil water content, mainly determined by soil water retention capacity, has a direct influence on BSCs.…”

Actividad geomorfológica y colonización vegetal en depósitos de abanicos aluviales del desierto del monte central de Argentina

“…El último género también se puede encontrar en el desierto situado en el sur de Nuevo México, donde Larrea tridentata se presenta principalmente en suelos de textura gruesa y su hábitat se ha expandido de manera significativa durante los últimos 150 años (Michaud et al, 2013). De esta manera, factores como la topografía y la litología son responsables de la heterogeneidad de la vegetación, lo que coincide con estudios similares (Matteucci y Colma, 1982;Bisigato et al, 2009;Flores y Suvires, 2012;Flores et al, 2015a).…”

Gypsum Soils—Their Morphology, Classification, Function, and Landscapes

“…Biological soil crusts (BSC) are a common ground cover on gypseous soils with high gypsum content in surface soil and subsoil (Michaud et al, 2013). Gypsum content in soils, in the absence of more soluble salts, does not have a significant chemical impact on most plant growth.…”

“…Gypsum content in soils, in the absence of more soluble salts, does not have a significant chemical impact on most plant growth. However, physical constraints to plant growth on gypseous soils, including surface crusts and root-restrictive layers in the subsoil, can restrict vegetative growth and favor establishment of BSC (Gibbens and Lenz, 2001;Michaud et al, 2013). Also, as previously mentioned, the potential (in desert environments) for minimal water availability on a high-gypsum soil surface in response to changes in water of hydration of gypsum needs investigation.…”