Loamy Sediments Research Articles

Soils of the Avam forest-tundra (Southwestern Taimyr)

The purpose of the study was to describe the common characteristics of the soil cover of the poorly studied territory of the Avam tundra. Location and time of the study. The soil survey was conducted during the summer season (end of July – mid of August) 2021 in the North Siberian lowland in the middle Dudypta River, 45–60 km to the north of the Central Siberian Plateau. Methodology. Soil pits (24) were dug at three key sites, in the most typical habitats. The main soil chemical properties were determined in 53 samples from 13 pits. The main results. The soils of automorphic conditions were identified as Cryosols on the loams and as Arenosols on sands and sandy loams. Under difficult drainage, Gleyic subtypes of these soils or Gleysols are common. Zonal Cryosols are more typical for larch woodlands mostly in the eastern part of the territory. Arenosols are distributed mainly on the sandy sowback in the eastern part, and on the second above-floodplain terrace of Dudypta and Kystykhtakh. Arenosols microcomplexes are common for the spotted tundra of the second above-floodplain terraces. On sandy loam and loamy sediments, upper gleyic layer is formed under the spots. These soils are interbedded with upper gleyic Cryosols. The floodplains are occupied by Humic Fluvisols, and Histic Gleyic Fluvisols of the first floodplain terrace. Conclusion. In general, the soils, typical of the Taimyr forest-tundra, are common in the surveyed territory. Given the limitations of our research on the most drained parts of the terraces, the location of podburs may be a characteristic feature of this particular part of the terraces. It can be assumed that in the central, more hydromorphic parts of the local watersheds, the Gleysols are more common.

Trace Element’s Speciation in the Water and Bottom Sediments of the Pirogovo Reservoir

The composition and speciation of trace elements were studied in surface and interstitial waters along with solid phase of bottom sediments to characterize the abiotic segment of the Pirogovo Reservoir. It was found that the concentrations of metals in surface waters did not exceed the MACs for fishery basins, excluding Zn and Cu (2–9 and up to 2 MACs, respectively). According to thermodynamic calculations, the predominant metal speciation in water is free ions (Sr, Ba, Zn, Ni, Co, and Cd), as well as fulvate and carbonate complexes of Cu and Pb, respectively. Interstitial waters showed a regular increase of the fraction of the sulfate complexes of trace elements in loamy sediments. The solid phase of the latter as well was characterized by low anomalous concentrations of Zn, Cd, Co, and Ni. According to the data of extraction, the metals were either fixed in bottom sediments within crystal structure of silicates or bound to oxides and hydroxides of iron and manganese, excluding Cd and Mn, which are characterized by a considerable role of their exchangeable and bound to carbonates fraction in the particulate matter.

Pedogenesis in the Tundra Zone of Coastal Lowlands of Northeastern Siberia

Coastal lowlands of northeastern Siberia are composed of the Pleistocene ice-rich organic-containing loamy sediments of the Ice Complex (yedoma) and products of their transformation in the Holocene. In the tundra zone, three major trends of modern pedogenesis depending on the geomorphic position and age of particular landforms have been identified. On the interfluves affected by thermokarst processes in the Holocene, somewhat elevated remains of the Late Pleistocene Ice Complex alternate with vast thermokarst depressions (alases) with lakes. Cryozems are developed in automorphic plain positions and on the upper parts of slopes. The profiles of these soils are strongly affected by cycles of frost boiling and cryoturbation; under their influence, specific suprapermafrost accumulative organomineral horizons are formed. Gleyzation predominates in the soils of the low- and middle-level Holocene terraces of alases. Peat accumulation is progressively developed in the bottoms of alas depressions.

Central and Eastern Europe Paleoscience: From Local to Continental Perspective

Dagmar Cave, Czech Republic, is the first locality in the Moravian Karst where sediments of Cromerian age have been discovered and it is the first locality with such a large number of species of molluscs of this age. It was originally a swallow hole initiated in the Neogene, which has since accumulated sediments. Basal sediments are palaeontologically-sterile stream boulders, originating from weathered Lower Carboniferous rock. After this, fossiliferous, loamy sediments were carried in from the entrance by streams and/or gravity. Molluscan and vertebrate assemblages, along with palynological remains, are indicative of interglacial conditions. Faunal analysis determined that this could only consist of one interglacial, either Cromerian III or IV. This is the first record of Middle Pleistocene molluscan fauna in the Moravian Karst. Palynology demonstrated a humid and thermophilic vegetation typical of a Cromerian interglacial, with forest, and probably water, and an open grassy/bushy area close to the cave. The age is constrained by a MIS 7 U-Th date (182 ka) on the calcite flowstone that overlies the interglacial material and underlies the palaeontologically more sterile upper sediments.

Human settlement and vegetation-climate relationships in the Greenland Stadial 5 at the Piovesello site (Northern Apennines, Italy)

AbstractThe Gravettian settlements of Europe are considered as an expression of human adaptation to harsh climates. In Southern Europe, however, favorable vegetation-climate conditions supported hunters-gatherer subsistence and the maintenance of their large-scale networks. This was also the case of the North-Adriatic plain and the Apennine mountain ridge in Italy. Traditionally considered lacking evidence, the northern part of the Apennine ridge has recently yielded the Early Gravettian site of Piovesello, located at 870 m a.s.l. Survey and excavation revealed lithic artifacts in primary position embedded in loamy sediments. Radiocarbon dating, anthracological and extended palynological and microcharcoal analyses have been integrated to reconstruct the palaeoecological context of this camp which was probably positioned above the timberline in an arid rocky landscape, bounding the fronts of local glaciers close to their maximum expansion at the time of Greenland Stadial (GS) 5 (32.04 - 28.9 ka cal BP). Human activity left ephemeral traces represented by lithic artefacts, charcoal, and the introduction of radiolarites from sources in proximity to the site and of chert from very far western sources. Evidence from Piovesello contributes to the reconstruction of human and vegetation ecology during Late Pleistocene glaciations and also provides hints for the historical biogeography of petrophytic plants and their orographic relics in the northern Apennine.

Инженерно-геологические условия долины реки Неман и прилегающих территорий в пределах Беларуси

Рассмотрены особенности формирования и пространственной дифференциации инженерно-геологических условий, выделены генетические типы грунтовых толщ: озерно-ледниковые, водно-ледниковые, моренные, аллювиальные, озерные и болотные, Проанализированы физико-механические свойства грунтов и дана оценка их использования как оснований инженерных сооружений. Определено, что в пределах речной долины Немана целесообразно в качестве естественных оснований зданий и сооружений использовать суглинистые, супесчаные и песчаные отложения различного генезиса, а также озерно-ледниковые ленточные глины, а широко распространенные на изучаемой территории болотные отложения использовать в качестве естественных оснований крайне нежелательно.

Dagmar Cave (Czech Republic, Moravian Karst), a unique palaeontological site of the Cromerian Interglacial

Dagmar Cave, Czech Republic, is the first locality in the Moravian Karst where sediments of Cromerian age have been discovered and it is the first locality with such a large number of species of molluscs of this age. It was originally a swallow hole initiated in the Neogene, which has since accumulated sediments. Basal sediments are palaeontologically-sterile stream boulders, originating from weathered Lower Carboniferous rock. After this, fossiliferous, loamy sediments were carried in from the entrance by streams and/or gravity. Molluscan and vertebrate assemblages, along with palynological remains, are indicative of interglacial conditions. Faunal analysis determined that this could only consist of one interglacial, either Cromerian III or IV. This is the first record of Middle Pleistocene molluscan fauna in the Moravian Karst. Palynology demonstrated a humid and thermophilic vegetation typical of a Cromerian interglacial, with forest, and probably water, and an open grassy/bushy area close to the cave. The age is constrained by a MIS 7 U-Th date (182 ka) on the calcite flowstone that overlies the interglacial material and underlies the palaeontologically more sterile upper sediments.

Современное состояние степной растительности Придонских песчаных массивов

Проведен мониторинг видового состава и запасов надземной фитомассы степной растительности Придонских песков. Выявлены особенности состава и структуры степного комплекса фитоценозов песчаных массивов. Установлены доминирующие и субдоминирующие виды на различных по степени задернованности песках и в луговом биотопе. На Усть-Кундрюченском песчаном массиве выявлено 29 видов из 11 семейств: Asteraceae — 8, Caryophyllaceae — 2, Cyperaceae — 1, Euphorbiaceae — 2, Gramineae — 8, Plantaginaceae — 1, Polygonaceae — 1, Fabaceae — 3, Rosaceae — 1, Rubiaceae — 1, Umbelliferae — 1. Из них полукустарников — 3, многолетних растений — 22, одно- и двулетних — 4. На Казанско-Вешенских песках встречается 18 видов из 7 семейств: Asteraceae — 5, Cruciferae — 2, Gramineae — 7, Cyperaceae — 1, Euphorbiaceae — 1, Fabaceae — 1, Lamiaceae — 1. Из них полукустарников — 3, многолетних растений — 12, одно- и двулетних — 3. Фитоценозы наиболее богаты видами семейства Asteraceae и Gramineae. Наибольшую долю в сообществах занимают многолетние кормовые растения. Луговой биотоп Усть-Кундрюченского песчаного массива отличается большим видовым разнообразием (включает 16 видов из 7 семейств) и доминированием в ценозах фитомассы люцерны румынской. Выявлена биологическая продуктивность травостоев в зависимости от степени зарастания песков. На равнинных и склоновых, слабоувалистых, песчаных и супесчаных отложениях Усть-Кундрюченского песчаного массива продуктивность составила 2,3 – 2,5 т/га, на заросших бугристо-холмистых песках — 2,0 т/га, на средне- и слабозаросших бугристых песках — 0,9 – 1,0 т/га, в луговом биотопе — 5,2 т/га. На равнинных и склоновых, песчаных и супесчаных отложениях Казанско-Вешенского массива средняя продуктивность фитоценозов составила 2,7 т/га, на заросших бугристо-холмистых песках — 2,3 т/га, на средне- и слабозаросших бугристых песках — 0,6 – 1,3 т/га.

Caddo Ceramic Vessels from the T. M. Sanders Site (41LR2) on the Red River in Lamar County, Texas

The T. M. Sanders site (41LR2) is one of the more important ancestral Caddo sites known in East Texas, primarily because of its two earthen mounds and the well-preserved mortuary features of Caddo elite persons buried in Mound No. 1 (the East Mound). The Sanders site is located on a broad alluvial terrace just south of the confluence of Bois d’Arc Creek and the Red River. The terrace has silt loam soils, which have a shallow dark brown silt loam A-horizon overlying thick B- and C-horizons that range from dark reddish-brown, reddish-brown, dark brown, to yellowish-red in color. These soils formed in loamy alluvial sediments of the Red River. In this Special Publication, we discuss the analysis and documentation of the 78 ceramic vessels from the T. M. Sanders site in the collections of the Texas Archeological Research Laboratory at The University of Texas at Austin. Our concern is in documenting the stylistic and technological character of these vessels, and assessing their cultural relationships and stylistic associations; almost 80 percent of these vessels are from burial features excavated by University of Texas archaeologists in Mound No. 1 (East Mound) in July and August 1931; others are from excavations in midden deposits between the two mounds. We also consider and revise the current ceramic taxonomy for a number of the vessels from the T. M. Sanders site.

Fluvial dynamics of the Žitava River, SW Slovakia, during the last 45 ka BP and their influence on Early Bronze Age human occupation

As part of a geoarchaeological project exploring the Early Bronze Age settlement of Fidvár, this geomorphologic study explores the fluvial dynamics of the Žitava River in southwestern Slovakia, casting light for the first time on the regional river's Holocene and late Pleistocene development. In order to reconstruct the Žitava's fluvial evolution, floodplain deposits were investigated by Electrical Resistivity Tomography, selected percussion drillings, and AMS radiocarbon dating. In combination, these methods provided a detailed view into the river's history. As a result of the climatic variations engendered by the last glacial cycle, the fluvial style repeatedly changed between a braided and anastomosing system. However, during long time periods of the Middle and Upper Plenivistulian, the river retained an anastomosing or even meandering style, in contrast to Central European rivers. Therefore, in agreement with other investigations, our results suggest different climatic conditions in the northern Pannonian Basin from 40 to 20 ka BP. During the Early and Middle Holocene, a dense vegetation cover (dry-mesic oak forests) led to stable geomorphological conditions and a meandering channel resulted in lateral erosion of the floodplain fringes. Accumulation of alluvial loamy sediments did not start until the Neolithic and has been related to anthropogenic landscape changes, similar to other naturally favoured areas (Central Europe). Finally, two reconstructed river positions indicate a considerable lateral fluvial erosion of the Early Bronze Age settlement at Fidvár. Consequently, the original settlement area – already thought to be the largest in the region – was once significantly larger.

CO2 production in anthropogenic Chinampas soils in Mexico City .

We studied microbial-associated CО<sub>2</sub> production in anthropogenic <em>chinampas</em> soils. The soils were constructed by the accumulation of materials such as organic matter and loamy lacustrine sediments in Pre-Hispanic cultures in Mexico. To study the temperature sensitivity of CО<sub>2</sub> production related to soil depth, moisture and oxygen availability, soil samples were collected at depths of 0-7, 7-18, 18-30, 30-40 and 40-50 cm. The soil samples were incubated under aerobic and anaerobic conditions at controlled temperatures (-5, 0, 5, 10, 20, 30 °C) and soil moistures of 10, 30, 60 and 90% water-filled pore space. For all the soil depths, incubation temperatures and soil moistures, the mean rate of aerobic CO<sub>2</sub> production was 58.0 mg CO<sub>2</sub> kg<sup>-1</sup> d<sup>-1</sup> and that of anaerobic CO<sub>2</sub> production 31.2 mg CO<sub>2</sub> kg<sup>-1</sup> d<sup>-1</sup>, with the highest rate found in the soil samples collected at a depth of 0-7 cm. A decrease in soil organic carbon content inhibited CO<sub>2</sub> production more under anaerobic than aerobic conditions. The dependence of aerobic СО<sub>2</sub> production on soil moisture increased at what constituted both unusually high and low temperatures for the study area. Since the response of СО<sub>2</sub> production to temperature was lower under anaerobic than aerobic conditions, the increase in soil moisture content led to a decrease in the temperature sensitivity of СО<sub>2</sub> production. The response of microbial activity to other factors may be modified under what constitutes the limiting conditions for any of the factors considered, as follows: (i) when anaerobiosis increases in the soil, the limiting effect of substrate availability on microbial activity increases; (ii) the CO<sub>2</sub> production rate becomes more dependent on soil moisture under temperature stress; (iii) the sensitivity of CO<sub>2</sub> production to temperature is highest under drought stress.

Large red cyanobacterial mats (Spirulina subsalsa Oersted ex Gomont) in the shallow sublittoral of the southern Baltic

We report the first observation of large red cyanobacterial mats in the southern Baltic Sea. The mats (up to 2.5m in diameter) were observed by SCUBA divers at 7.7m depth on loamy sediments in the Gulf of Gdańsk in mid-November 2013. The main structure of the mat was formed by cyanobacteria Spirulina subsalsa Oersted ex Gomont; a number of other cyanobacteria, diatoms and nematode species were also present. After a few days in the laboratory, the red trichomes of S. subsalsa started to turn blue-green in colour, suggesting the strong chromatic acclimation abilities of this species.

Large red cyanobacterial mats (Spirulina subsalsa Oersted ex Gomont) in the shallow sublittoral of the southern Baltic

We report the first observation of large red cyanobacterial mats in the southern Baltic Sea. The mats (up to 2.5 m in diameter) were observed by SCUBA divers at 7.7 m depth on loamy sediments in the Gulf of Gdańsk in mid-November 2013. The main structure of the mat was formed by cyanobacteria Spirulina subsalsa Oersted ex Gomont; a number of other cyanobacteria, diatoms and nematode species were also present. After a few days in the laboratory, the red trichomes of S. subsalsa started to turn blue-green in colour, suggesting the strong chromatic acclimation abilities of this species.

Peculiar properties of the composition of the organic matter of the original forest Phaeozems soils of the northeast of Kostroma oblast

The composition of the organic matter of the forest Phaeozem soil of Kostroma oblast, which is unusual in its genesis, was investigated by the method of physical fractionation. The Phaeozems were formed in an automorphic position on loamy sediments of Triasic age. The carbon distribution in fractions of organic substance (OS) is the evidence of the hydromorphic nature of the OS origin. A hypothesis about the cause of the formation of the modern organic profile of the soil during evolution is discussed.

Morphology of physical soil crusts and infiltration patterns in an artificial catchment

Hydraulic properties of the soil surface control the partitioning of rainfall between infiltration and runoff. For agricultural soils in humid climate regions, physical soil crusts have mostly been reported to reduce water infiltration. For initial soils developing in such climate on unstructured sediments without organic carbon, effects of soil crusting and slaking on infiltration was largely unknown. The objective was to compare initial soil and porous system formation with infiltration from three locations in a constructed hydrological catchment that has been left to undirected ecological succession for three years. We expected to find characteristic, mainly textural, effects of physical soil crusts during this initial stage of soil development. The three-dimensional (3D) micro-morphology was described using the X-ray computed tomography (CT); two-dimensional (2D) infiltration patterns were obtained from drip infiltration experiments using time-resolved neutron radiography (NT). Selected samples from three locations represent major sediment types of the catchment. The CT data indicated structural crusts on soil consisting of sandy to loamy sediments and depositional crusts on more sandy sediments. A combination of these two types developed at locations with silt to fine sand sediments; probably as a result of aeolian deposition on a structural crust. Moreover, isolated vesicle-shaped pores mostly reported from soils in arid environments were observed in most samples. The 2D infiltration patterns reflected the structural alteration by crusts only in samples containing silt and fine sand. Infiltrating water tended to pond within the aeolian deposits above the underlying structural crust. For all other samples, 2D infiltration pattern were relatively uniform; only negligibly small effect of structural crusts and vesicular pores on infiltration and redistribution could be observed in NR experiments although field measured infiltration rates were different. The relatively small differences in moisture patterns observed using NT suggest that the texture-related differences in physical soil crusts indicated by pore structure images using CT had only little effects on infiltration. The study improved understanding soil structure and water distribution relations in a hydrological catchment during initial ecosystem development.

Limitation of using heat as a groundwater tracer to define aquifer properties: experiment in a large tank model

A large tank (4 × 8 × 1.4 m) filled with loamy sediments and equipped with 26 standard piezometers and 20 multilevel temperature μloggers is used to carry out a thermal monitoring test and investigate the limits of heat as tracer to define aquifer parameters. A constant temperature test was conducted by originating a heat plume using a groundwater heat exchanger and a constant head was used to create a steady state flux. Temperature was monitored continuously during 40 days by data μloggers. To estimate aquifer parameters, a heat transport model was constructed using MT3DMS. Although the boundary conditions are well known, there is still a bias between computed and measured temperatures. Results show that in fine-grained sediments, which are thermal diffusion dominated, it is difficult to precisely distinguish and quantify diffusivity and dispersivity components without also considering solute tracer tests. In this type of alluvial sediments, using heat as groundwater tracer to define aquifer properties can be problematic, since heat transport is relatively insensitive to the longitudinal dispersivity, a relevant parameter for solute transport modeling.

Holocene high floods on the Planina Polje, Classical Dinaric Karst, Slovenia

The Planina Polje is located in the northwestern part of Notranjsko Podolje, Slovenia. Annual floods cover the flattened floor of the polje at elevation 445 m a.s.l. and reach the depth of approximately 8 meters. Loamy sediments which were found on surface and subsurface features from the inflow part of Planina Polje up to the elevations of about 495 m a.s.l., indirectly show that floods in the past must have been much more extensive than the recent ones. Radiocarbon dating of flowstone layer from side passage Tiha Jama in Planina Cave revealed that the last such extreme floods appeared around 5,706 ± 49 BP. The time frame of the flood roughly corresponds with the Altithermal (8,000–5,000 BP). More humid mid-Holocene climate might be the main cause for the high floods on Planina Polje.Keywords: geomorphology, floods, radiocarbon dating (14C), Dinaric Karst, Planina Polje, Planina Cave.

Zonal features of humus formation in Al-Fe-humus podzols of the Kola Peninsula

Natural zonality manifests itself clearly in the territory of the Kola Peninsula: subzones of southern tundra, forest-tundra (sparse birch forest), and northern taiga replace one other from the north, to the Barents Sea coast, and to the south. Sandy and sandy loamy sediments of glacial, marine, and glaciofluvial origin are parent rocks all over the territory. Al-Fe-humus podzols, the profile of which is characterized by clear differentiation of the chemical composition and organic matter content, were formed on these rocks. There is almost no difference in the particle-size and total chemical composition of the podzols, whereas the content and composition of the humus in the soils of different zones differ significantly, and this is especially obvious in the illuvial horizon. As the climatic severity increases, the humus content in the mineral profile and the organic matter enrichment with nitrogen increase.

Aquisgrani terrae motus factus est (part 2): Evidence for medieval earthquake damage in the Aachen Cathedral (Germany)

During archaeological and geotechnical investigations, the Carolingian part of the Aachen Cathedral (Germany) was excavated. The Aachen Cathedral was the first building in Germany to join the UNESCO World Heritage list. In the rock walls of the fundament and medieval floors, open cracks were found. Subsidence of the mortar floor of about 50 cm with lateral dragging, which was reconstructed during the construction of the Cathedral, can be observed. The main building is founded on Devonian limestones and shales, Pleistocene loess and Roman urban debris. The loess and loamy sediments show angular cracks and fragments, which are not related to permafrost features but are interpreted as shear and extensional fractures. Some of the cracks are filled with black clay from below as they open downwards. These structures are interpreted as injection features caused by thixotropy of clays. Open cracks, lateral spread and injections structures occur usually during earthquakes with a magnitude higher than 5.5. The historical German earthquake catalogues provide three important passages for historical earthquakes in the region of Aachen. Both fall into a relatively short time interval. One occurred in winter 803 AD, another one in 823 AD, and the last one in 829 AD between Ash Wednesday and Easter. Both notes tell of earthquake shaking and significant structural damage and fatalities. This and the constructional history allowed dating of the event, favouring the 803 AD event as the causative damaging earthquake observed in the Aachen Cathedral.

Budgeting soil erosion from floodplain sediments of the central Rhenish Slate Mountains (Westerwald), Germany

The distribution, thickness and composition of the floodplain sediments in the valleys of the Gelbach (Lower Westerwald) and Große Nister (Upper Westerwald) depend on the occurrence of loessic periglacial cover beds in their catchments as well as on historical land use. The budget of floodplain sedimentation was derived from a study of the floodloams underlying the monastery garden of Marienstatt, a village in the Große Nister valley. From the study of two occupation levels, pottery shards and radiocarbon dating, 55% of the floodloam can be attributed to the Modern period (younger than c. AD 1450). From the radiocarbon age of a charcoal fragment extracted from the base of the floodloam at another site in the Nister valley, it can be concluded that the floodloams were almost exclusively deposited by human impact since the time of High Medieval expansion of settlement into the Uplands. The fine-grained loamy sediments blanket a rather irregular floodplain of channels and gravel bars. Similar results as to the age of the floodplain sediments were obtained from radiocarbon datings obtained for the Gelbach valley. Floodloam sediment budgets of the rivers and their tributaries have been calculated for the Große Nister and the Gelbach valleys of the Westerwald and, for including a catchment of higher sedimentation, the Aar River of the Taunus Mountains, followed by a comparative analysis of the results in relation to potential erosion areas in the catchment. The amount of areal soil erosion in upland areas in historical times has been found to be considerably higher than generally assumed. Average amounts of anthropogenic soil erosion could thus be calculated from the floodloam deposition: 1677.4 t/ha for the Aar catchment, 1084.5 t/ha for the Gelbach catchment, and 841.8 t/ha for that of the Nister. The calculated total amount of soil erosion is then subdivided by periods.