THE OCCURRENCE AND DEVELOPMENT OF PEAT MOUNDS ON KING GEORGE ISLAND (MARITIME ANTARCTIC)

摘要

On King George Island, South Shetlands Islands, a type of peat formation has been discovered which has hot previously been reported from the Antarctic. These formations are in shape of mounds up to 7x15 m in area, with a peat layer of about l m thick. About twenty five cm below the surface there is a layer of permanently frozen peat. The mounds are covered by living mosses (Polytrichum alpinum and Drepanocladus uncinatus), Antarctic hair grass (Deschampsia antarctica) and li- chens. Erosion fissures occurring on the surface are evidence of contemporary drying and cessation of the mound's growth.