Phosphates in Ornithogenic soils of the maritime Antarctic
Abstract: Ornithogenic soils have been formed in stony loams on and around penguin rookeries along the sea shore of the maritime Antarctic. The fine fraction of these soils contains mainly posphates of various chemical and mineral compo-sitions. Genetic horizons of ornithogenic soils resulted from d...
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| Format: | Text |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
1990
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| Online Access: | http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/summary?doi=10.1.1.453.3162 http://polaris.nipr.ac.jp/~penguin/polarbiosci/issues/pdf/1990-Tatur.pdf |
| Summary: | Abstract: Ornithogenic soils have been formed in stony loams on and around penguin rookeries along the sea shore of the maritime Antarctic. The fine fraction of these soils contains mainly posphates of various chemical and mineral compo-sitions. Genetic horizons of ornithogenic soils resulted from diversified mineral composition of them in the vertical profile. Occurrence of apatite, brushite, struvite, urates(?) fluorite in the surface guano layer, and leucophosphite, minyulite, taranakite, vivianite, amorphous and crystalline phosphates in the phosphatized rock zone was documented. Among crystalline aluminium phosphates besides vashegyite, a new mineral arctowskite was distinguished. Chemical con~position, X-ray pattern, microscopic images of all selected phosphates was given. Most of the phosphates are relatively long-lasting under climatic conditions of the maritime Antarctic, and can be found in the places abandoned by penguins hundreds and thousands of years ago. A high content of nutrients is available for the poor tundra vegetation growing around current and over the relic ornithogenic soils, and can be an important factor controlling their productivity, chemical composition and probably also species diversity. 1. |
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