@article{PAR00007501,
  title = {{T}he origin of vertisols and their relationship to acid sulfate soils in the {S}enegal valley},
  author = {{B}arbi{\'e}ro, {L}aurent and {O}uld {M}ohamedou, {A}. and {F}urian, {S}. and {A}venturier, {A}. and {M}arlet, {S}.},
  editor = {},
  language = {{ENG}},
  abstract = {{I}n the {S}enegal valley, it is commonly considered that the {A}cid {S}ulfate {S}oils of the delta are fossil soils overlain by more recent sediments, and that the {V}ertisols, which abruptly overlie a thick sandy horizon, result from a change in the sedimentation mode of the river. {H}owever, we show that both soils belong to the same pedological system extending from the delta to the limit of the last marine transgression. {T}his conclusion is based on (1) the study of soil profiles intermediate between {A}cid {S}ulfate {S}oils and {V}ertisols along a 100-m sequence in the delta, (2) the mineralogy of the clay fraction ( < 2 {A}m) in a 200-km transect along the river, and (3) the similarity of the sand size distribution across the textural discontinuity between the horizons. {T}he following processes are involved in the pedological transformations: (1) development of acidity by oxidation of pyrite, (2) neutralization of acidity initially by the carbonate in shell beds, and later by the hydrolysis of easily weatherable silicate clays. {T}he slightly alkaline river water precipitates kaolinite and later smectite at the contact between the strongly acidic and slightly alkaline environments. {T}his results in the formation of a superficial vertic clay horizon surmounting a sandy horizon. {T}herefore, we emphasize that the soil morphology results from development and control of acidity and not from changes in past climates.},
  keywords = {{A}cid {S}ulfate {S}oil ; {V}ertisol ; {S}oil genesis ; {S}enegal valley ; {S}enegal delta ; {SENEGAL}},
  booktitle = {},
  journal = {{C}atena},
  volume = {59},
  numero = {},
  pages = {93--116},
  year = {2004},
  URL = {https://www.documentation.ird.fr/hor/{PAR}00007501},
}