Soil organic matter accumulation before, during, and after the last glacial maximum in Byers Peninsula, Maritime Antarctica

Abstract

Organic matter is incorporated into soil by biological activity, and its preservation depends on composition and organic-mineral interactions. Frost activity, dry and cold climate, and glacial retreat-advance dynamics complexify soil organic matter storage in Antarctica. Byers Peninsula is the largest ice-free area in Antarctica and hosts a high diversity of vegetable and animal species. We hypothesize that (i) the SOM in the Byers Peninsula may reveal a distinct composition due to the antiquity of the ice-free areas not entirely obliterated by the advancing glaciers during the LGM; and (ii) the advancing ice caps at Byers allowed the accumulation of organic carbon at sheltered points of the Peninsula. Thus, the objectives of this work were: i) to characterize physically and chemically selected soils at Byers Peninsula, with emphasis on organic C and N stocks in different soil types, and ii) SOM dating of representative soil profiles. Thirteen soil profiles were dug, described, and classified. The plant species present at each site were identified. Chemical and physical attributes were determined. The C and N contents, δ13C and δ15N ratio isotopes were determined in the SOM physical size-fractionated particles. The C and N stocks were calculated for each SOM fraction. The deepest horizon of six soil profiles were dated by the 14C method.. Soils from Byers Peninsula showed a diverse and varied biochemical nature of SOM, resulting in varying content of C and N. The δ13C weighted mean of the SOM reflects the dominant vegetation type present in each sampling location, except for pre-Holocene soils and soils influenced by ornithogenesis. The highest organic C and N pools were recorded at subsurface horizons and attributed to the organo-mineral association fraction in upper platforms. For all soil groups, there was a significant overlap of δ13C and enrichment of δ15N in all fractions of SOM, requiring the combination of these two signatures to identify possible sources of contribution to SOM in this environment. The oldest soils, subjected to early-mid Holocene uplift, revealed an endolithic signature of pre-LGM age, the first recorded in Maritime Antarctica to this day. This first pre-LGM SOC record can indicate the initial modern colonization of Maritime Antarctica and suggests that ice caps advance during LGM was limited. Soils formed during and after the LGM in low platforms have a lacustrine signature indicating an influence of snowmelt, ice thawing, and permafrost degradation in selecting hygrophilous species. Soils formed in raised beaches have the lowest organic C and N stocks, and the isotopic composition of SOM indicates ancient ornithogenic influence.