| Abstract: | Soil types and erosion phenomena at high elevations of the axial Pyrenees Two soil toposequences are described for the high altitude valley of Benasque (axial Pyrenees, Northern Spain, elevation 1800–2400 m a.s.1.). Deeply weathered cambisols (mostly dystric and eutric) are developed from quaternary deposits of paleozoic sedimentary and metamorphic rocks. These soils are mostly under grass cover and strongly grazed. The physical and chemical properties of these cambisols and the corresponding erosion phenomena are described. In one toposequence (Ampriú) a specific form of soil erosion called “regressive topsoil denudation” is common and correlated with soils developed from stratified substrates with sandy top soil overlying clayey and silty horizons. |
