Soil nutrients and vegetation characteristics of a Dorsel Thule site in the Canadian Arctic

We conducted a systematic study of soils and vegetation present at Amaqquak saat on Igloolik Island, Nunavut, a site occupied by Dorset and Thule peopl e prior to 1823 and probably for over a thousand years. We compared this si te to an area affected by ongoing mammal and bird activity and an area of r elatively unfertilized polar semidesert. At these locations, we estimated p ercent cover of vegetation, identified vascular plant species, measured soi l depth, and collected soil samples. The soil samples were analyzed for tot al nitrogen, sodium bicarbonate-extractable phosphorus, available potassium , available magnesium, and pH. Percent plant cover, abundance of plant species indicative of enrichment, a nd soil depth were greatest within the area of anthropogenic influence and decreased downslope to the sea. Total nitrogen level in the upslope area of anthropogenic influence (2.61% +/- 0.88) was similar to that in areas of b ird and mammal activity (2.54% +/- 0.78); it was higher than the levels in the downslope area of human fertilization (0.65% +/- 0.82) and the unaltere d polar semidesert area (0.28% +/- 0.38). Phosphorus levels in the influenc ed areas were 5 to 6 times those in the uninfluenced polar semidesert. The magnesium level was highest in the area of bird and mammal activity (766.8 mg/L +/- 53.35), whereas potassium levels were similar throughout the study area. The lowest pH was found in the upslope area of past human occupation , and pH differences among sites paralleled those observed for nitrogen.