Landscape-scale vegetation production on glaciated surfaces of different ages in the Arctic Foothills, Alaska
Auerbach NA, Walker DA, Walker MD, Hope A, Stow D. 1992. Landscape-scale vegetation production on glaciated surfaces of different ages in the Arctic Foothills, Alaska. Bulletin of the Ecological Society of America. 73(2):100
Are older glaciated landscapes in the Arctic more productive? As a surrogate for vegetation production, we used the normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) derived from a SPOT/HRV-XS satellite image. We analyzed trends of NDVI on glaciated landscapes ranging in age from about 11.5 ka to over 125 ka. The pattern of higher NDVI values with older surfaces is thought to be related to different vegetation types supported on evolving landscapes. The greater presence of deciduous shrubs such as Salix planifolia and Betula nana on the older surfaces could result in a higher NDVI; the growth of these shrubs is promoted by thick organic soils which develop over time, gradually become moister and more acidic. Our results indicate a trend of increasing NDVI with landscape age, spanning many thousands of years in this cold arctic environment. Whether or not primary production is also correlated with landscape age still needs to be investigated.
- Type
- Journal Article
- Authors
- Auerbach, N; Walker, D; Walker, M; Hope, A; Stow, D
- Units
- ARCN , BELA , CAKR , GAAR , KOVA , NOAT
- Keywords
- Arctic, Brooks Range, Glaciers, Landscapes, natural revegetation, North Slope, Succession, Vegetation