Late glacial soil catena in upper Teleki Valley, Mount Kenya Afroalpine area

Abstract

Soil morphology, clay and primary mineral composition, soil chemistry and soil microflora were studied in a prominent soil catena on a late glacial moraine of Liki III age in the upper Afroalpine zone on Mount Kenya. Variations in the physical, mineral and chemical components of this catena are used to determine the degree to which material moves through the toposequence, and as a basis for discussion of the interrelationships involved. Soil profile expression is largely a function of changes imposed on each soil member by position in the catena and movement downslope. The soil microflora appear impoverished in both numbers and species through all members of the catena. From the analysis of soil chemical characteristics we deduce that mineral deficiencies, particularly phosphorus, and possibly pH, serve to limit the activities of bacteria and fungi, and hence their capacity to contribute to organic matter breakdown and soil forming processes.