Microscale Heterogeneity of Floodplain Meadows (Using the Example of the Delta of the Northern Dvina River)

Abstract

This article provides a quantitative evaluation of aspects of the spatial heterogeneity of soil and vegetation cover of floodplains in relation to the microrelief using the example of floodplains of the Northern Dvina River delta. It is detected that the soil and vegetation cover of the floodplain meadows in the Northern Dvina Delta is a feature of a relief on a microlandscape level. This dependence displays itself in the specific structural features of some ingredients of the soil and vegetation cover. Due to the intrazonal localization of floodplain ecosystems, the results of a local survey, for example, in Arkhangelsk oblast of Russia, can be extrapolated to other regions of the country and the world. The relevance of the study of heterogeneity of soil and vegetation cover is based not only on fundamental aspects, but also on the needs of agricultural management.