Polar deserts are not devoid of life despite the extreme low temperature and scarcity of water. Recently, patterned stone fields--caused by periglacial activity--have been surveyed in the Arctic and Antarctic. It was found that the productivity of the cyanobacteria and algae (hypoliths) that colonise the underside of the stones is strongly related to the pattern of the stones. The hypolith asse...

Abstract. Periglacial features, such as various kinds of patterned ground, cryoturbations, frost wedges, solifluction structures, and blockfields, are among the most common relics cold climate periods, which repetitively occurred throughout Quaternary. As such, they widespread archives past environmental conditions. Climate controls on development periglacial however, remain poorly known, thus ...