The characteristics of cold humid soil formation on the Commander Islands

This article characterizes poorly studied soils of Bering Island (in the Commander Islands) that formed on the derivatives of volcanic-sedimentary rocks and tuffs in a cold oceanic climate. The alfehumic process that is dominant in the island soils has considerable specificity. A high content of nonsilicate forms of iron, aluminum, and aggressive organic matter against a background of small annual precipitation in the form of drizzle leads to a short migration path of alfehumic compounds and their fixation in the organic-accumulative part of the profile in the form of original spherical aggregates. In the distribution of derivatives of rock-containing components that are capable of bleaching (aleurolites and acidic volcanic glass), spatial heterogeneity promotes the formation of combinations and mosaics of podburs and podzols.