Focus Issue: Imprint of Environmental Change on Paleosolsстатья
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Аннотация:Imprint of Environmental Change on Paleosols
Preface
This Focus Issue comprises six papers presented at the symposium “Imprint of Environmental Change on Paleosols” held during
the 18th World Congress of Soil Science (WCSS), July 9–15, 2006 in Philadelphia (Pennsylvania, USA):
(1) D. Sauer et al.: Podzol development with time in sandy beach deposits in southern Norway;
(2) I. V. Kovda et al.: PaleoVertisols of the northwest Caucasus: (Micro)morphological, physical, chemical, and isotopic constraints
on early to late Pleistocene climate;
(3) S. Priori et al.: Pedostratigraphy of Terra Rossa and Quaternary geological evolution of a lacustrine limestone plateau in
central Italy;
(4) A. Tsatskin: Near-surface paleosols in coastal sands at the outlet of Hadera stream (Israel) in the light of archeology and
luminescence chronology;
(5) M. Wieder et al.: Paleosols of the southern coastal plain of Israel;
(6) X. F. Hu: Yellow-brown earth on Quaternary red clay in Langxi County, Anhui Province in subtropical China: Evidence for
paleoclimatic change in late Quaternary period.
The issue will thus take the reader from the temperate climates of S Norway (present MAT approx. 6°C) and the N Caucasus
(approx. 10°C–12°C) to the humid Mediterranean climate of Tuscany (Italy), then to Israel with dry Mediterranean to mildly arid
environments, and finally to subtropical China. However, the papers represent not only studies from different regions, but also
reflect some recent developments in paleopedology. Quantification of rates of soil formation as presented in the first paper is
one of the current foci in paleopedological research. Combination of various (paleo-)pedological techniques such as micromorphology,
physical, and chemical analyses has always been important in paleopedology, but has been complemented by
modern techniques such as SEM/EDS, measurements of magnetic susceptibility and Mößbauer spectra, as applied in several
papers. Multidisciplinary approaches are of special importance for successful deciphering of terrestrial archives. This is illustrated
by several papers, which include isotopic analyses (no. 2), geomorphological survey (no. 3), and studies of the archeological
context (no. 4). Three of six papers presented (no. 3, 4, 5) use luminescence datings, which demonstrates the significant
impact of the (still ongoing) enormous development in luminescence dating in recent years on paleopedological studies.
As illustrated by several of these articles, paleopedology represents a link between soil science and other earth sciences,
especially Quaternary sciences. It is a fundamental part of the nature of paleopedology that it aims on collaboration with other
disciplines such as geomorphology, Quaternary geology, sedimentology, mineralogy, palynology, paleontology, plaleoclimatology,
archeology, and dating. As a consequence of the link function of paleopedology, paleopedologists are organized in both
the International Union of Soil Science (IUSS) and the International Union of Quaternary Research (INQUA).
The primary motivation for scientists to study paleosols is probably the fascination to contribute to the reconstruction of landscape
history, past ecosystems, and environmental changes by deciphering paleosols as terrestrial archives, which often has
to be done in a criminological way, looking for evidences and putting together a puzzle of various indications. However, such
studies are not only useful to identify past changes in the terrestrial record, but also help to understand general linkages between
environmental changes and soil transformations, which is important, when thinking about the question: “What are major
demands for paleopedologists in the 21st century?” One of the main recent ideas in the Paleopedology Commission is to use
the knowledge about past effects of environmental changes on soils to estimate future effects of climate change on soils and
possible consequences for related ecosystems. The most significant changes will most likely occur not in the central parts of
large and stable ecotones but at their margins, e.g., at the boundaries between dry steppes and deserts, or in very specific, fragile
ecotones like the Mediterranean, where minor changes in rainfall distribution may have major effects, or in high-latitude or
high-mountain ecosystems, where changes in seasonal frost or permafrost occur. Therefore, it seems to be one of the major
demands for paleopedologists to identify climate change–soil change relationships especially in such highly susceptible
regions.
Daniela Sauer Reinhold Jahn Karl-Heinz Feger
Topical Section Coordinator JPNSS Associate Editor JPNSS Editor (Soil Science)
Edoardo A. C. Costantini Alexander Makeev Peter Felix-Henningsen
Chair of IUSS commission Vice-chair of IUSS Chair of DBG-WG Paleopedology
on Paleopedology commission on 1996–2007
Paleopedology