Soils and Cryoturbation in Moist Nonacidic and Acidic Tundra in the Kuparuk River Basin, Arctic Alaska, U.S.A.

Abstract

Douglas and Tedrow (1960) were the first to report calcareous tundra soils in northern Alaska. Soils adjacent to the Sagavanirktok River were consistently alkaline. Calcareous soils derived from loess and lacustrine materials occur throughout the Prudhoe Bay region (Everett, 1975; Everett and Parkinson, 1977; Parkinson, 1978). Walker and Everett (1991) collected soil samples along a 20-km loess gradient downwind of the Sagavanirktok River, showing the effects of loess deposition on particlesize distribution, pH, and other soil properties. They proposed that early minerotrophic stages of tundra succession in northern Alaska are maintained by loess blown off the Sagavarnirktok, Canning, and other large braided rivers. The mechanism for soil acidification on loess-derived soils in the arctic foothills is not completely understood. Past studies suggest that plant succession plays a large role in the distribution of moist nonacidic and moist acidic tundra (Walker et al., 1995; Walker and Walker, 1996). This study compares and contrasts silt-rich soils under moist nonacidic tundra and moist acidic tundra over a much larger area than previous studies and illustrates the importance of cryoturbation in maintaining moist nonacidic tundra. The contribution is part of the Arctic Flux Study, an investigation into land-atmosphere-ice interactions in arctic Alaska (Weller et al., 1995).

Effects of sample mass and macrofossil type on radiocarbon dating of arctic and boreal lake sediments

“…This area has a mean July temperature of 11°C, a mean January temperature of -22°C, and 325 mm mean annual precipitation (Zhang et al, 1996). The Upper Capsule watershed is currently dominated by moist dwarf-shrub tussock-graminoid tundra (Walker et al, 1994;Muller et al, 1999), with moist, acidic, organic soils (Bockheim et al, 1998). The site is underlain by continuous permafrost, with a shallow thaw layer (e.g., Walker et al, 2001).…”

Estimating the Variability of Active‐Layer Thaw Depth in Two Physiographic Regions of Northern Alaska

“…There are no obvious patterned ground features at either site. Although separated by only 4 kilometers, they are dissimilar with respect to plant diversity, soil pH, mean thaw depth, and near-surface soil moisture content (Bockheim et al 1997(Bockheim et al , 1998Hinkel et al 2000;Walker, Walker, and Auerbach 1994;Walker, Auerbach, and Shippert 1995;). Site FSP 95-4 is in moist acidic tundra characterized by grassy tussocks spaced less than 1 meter apart.…”

Foliar and soil nutrients in tundra on glacial landscapes of contrasting ages in northern Alaska

“…Moist non-acidic tundra is present not only on recently deglaciated landscapes, but also on landscapes with high inputs of loess or lacustrine materials and a high degree of cryoturbation (Walker and Everett 1991;Bockheim et al 1998;Walker et al 1998). Previous research comparing plant biomass and soil nutrients on loess-dominated acidic and non-acidic tundra showed that aboveground biomass of Carex bigelowii, Hylocomium splendens, and Cassiope tetragona from nonacidic sites had higher concentrations of calcium (Ca) than biomass of those species from acidic sites, reflecting soils with high amounts of extractable Ca and high base saturation .…”