LOCATION ACANTILADO COEstablished Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Fine-silty, mixed, superactive, mesic Calcidic Haplustalfs
TYPICAL PEDON: Acantilado loam, on a northeast facing, 5 percent slope in grass at an elevation of 5,140 feet. (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise noted).
A--0 to 4 inches (0 to 10 cm); red (2.5YR 5/6) loam, dark reddish brown (2.5YR 3/4) moist; weak fine granular structure; soft, very friable, nonsticky, and nonplastic; many fine and common very fine roots; 6 percent gravel; strongly effervescent (4 percent calcium carbonate equivalent); moderately alkaline (pH 8.0); clear smooth boundary. (3 to 5 inches thick.)
Bw--4 to 15 inches (0 to 38 cm); reddish brown (2.5YR 5/4) silt loam, dark reddish brown (2.5YR 3/4) moist; moderate medium subangular blocky structure; slightly hard, very friable, slightly sticky, and slightly plastic; common very fine roots; 3 percent gravel; few fine distinct cabonate masses; violently effervescent (10 percent calcium carbonate equivalent); moderately alkaline (pH 8.2); abrupt smooth boundary. (5 to 11 inches thick.)
Btk1--15 to 28 inches (38 to 71 cm); light reddish brown (5YR 6/4) silt loam, reddish brown (5YR 4/4) moist; weak medium prismatic structure parting to moderate medium subangular blocks; hard, friable, slightly sticky, and slightly plastic; common very fine roots; few patchy distinct clay films on vertical faces of peds; 2 percent gravel; common medium distinct carbonate masses; violently effervescent (20 percent calcium carbonate equivalent); moderately alkaline (pH 8.3); clear smooth boundary.
Btk2--28 to 39 inches (71 to 99 cm); light red (2.5YR 6/6) silt loam, red (2.5YR 5/6) moist; weak medium prismatic structure parting to moderate medium subangular blocks; slightly hard, friable, slightly sticky, slightly plastic; few very fine roots; few patchy distinct clay films on vertical faces of peds; common medium soft carbonate masses; violently effervescent (25 percent calcium carbonate equivalent); moderately alkaline (pH 8.3); clear smooth boundary.
Btk3--39 to 58 inches (99 to 147 cm); red (2.5YR 5/6) silt loam, red (2.5YR 4/6) moist; weak medium prismatic structure parting to moderate medium subangular blocks; slightly hard, very friable, slightly sticky, slightly plastic; few very fine roots; few patchy distinct clay films on vertical faces of peds and in root channels; common medium soft carbonate masses; violently effervescent (20 percent calcium carbonate equivalent); moderately alkaline (pH 8.4); clear smooth boundary.
Btk4--58 to 62 inches (147 to 158 cm); light reddish brown (2.5YR 6/4) silt loam, reddish brown (2.5YR 4/4) moist; weak fine subangular blocky structure; slightly hard, friable, slightly sticky, slightly plastic; few patchy faint clay bridging on surfaces along pores; common medium soft carbonate masses; violently effervescent (27 percent calcium carbonate equivalent); moderately alkaline (pH 8.4); abrupt smooth boundary. (Combined thickness of the Btk horizons is 22 to 49 inches (56 to 125 cm)thick.)
BCk--62 to 70 inches (158 to 178 cm); red (2.5YR 5/6) silt loam, red (2.5YR 4/6) weak fine subangular blocky structure; slightly hard, friable, slightly sticky, and slightly plastic; common fine soft carbonate masses; violently effervescent (13 percent calcium carbonate equivalent); strongly alkaline (pH 8.5).
TYPE LOCATION: Las Animas County, Colorado; about 0.3 miles north of the New Mexico state line in Cobert Canyon; located about 400 feet south and 350 feet east of the northwest corner of sec. 16, T. 35 S., R. 54 W.; Jesus Canyon USGS quad; lat. 37 degrees 00 minutes 10.9 seconds N. and long. 103 degrees 28 minutes 40.7 seconds W., NAD 1983
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Soil moisture: The soil moisture control section is moist intermittently April though August, dry December through February; ustic moisture regime bordering on aridic.
Mean annual soil temperature: 51 to 55 degrees F (11 to 13 degrees C)
Mean summer soil temperature: 70 to 76 degrees F (21 to 24 degrees C)
Depth to secondary calcium carbonate: 0 to 7 inches (0 to 18 cm)
Depth to calcic horizon: 8 to 16 inches (20 to 40 cm)
Depth to the base of the argillic horizon: 30 to 65 inches (76 to 165 cm)
Particle-size control section (weighted average):
Clay content: 20 to 35 percent
Sand content: 5 to 30 percent, with less than 15 percent fine sand or coarser.
Rock fragments: 0 to 15 percent gravel
A horizon
Hue: 2.5YR to 7.5YR
Value: 4 to 6 dry, 3 or 4 moist
Chroma: 2 to 6
Clay content: 15 to 25 percent
Rock fragments: 0 to 5 percent
Calcium carbonate equivalent: 0 to 6 percent
Reaction: slightly alkaline or moderately alkaline
Bw horizon
Hue: 2.5YR or 5YR
Value: 4 to 6 dry, 3 to 5 moist
Chroma: 4 to 6
Texture: silt loam, loam, silty clay loam
Clay content: 15 to 25 percent
Rock fragments: 0 to 15 percent
Calcium carbonate equivalent: 2 to 15 percent
Reaction: slightly alkaline or moderately alkaline
Btk horizons
Hue: 10R to 5YR
Value: 5 to 7 dry, 4 to 6 moist
Chroma: 3 to 6
Texture: silt loam, silty clay loam, clay loam
Clay content: 20 to 35 percent
Rock fragments: 0 to 5 percent
Calcium carbonate equivalent: 15 to 35 percent
Reaction: moderately alkaline or strongly alkaline
BCk horizon
Hue: 10R to 5YR
Value: 5 or 6 dry, 4 or 5 moist
Chroma: 4 to 6
Texture: silt loam, loam
Clay content: 15 to 27 percent
Rock fragments: 0 to 5
Calcium carbonate equivalent: 3 to 15 percent
Reaction: moderately alkaline or strongly alkaline
COMPETING SERIES: These are the
Cahona (CO),
Canina (KS),
Kucu (CO),
Plughat (CO), and
Villegreen (CO) series.
Cahona soils: are 20 to 30 inches (50 to 75 cm) to the base of the argillic horizon.
Canina soils: have hues of 10YR in the control section.
Kucu soils: have hues of 7.5YR or 10YR and are very gravelly below the argillic horizon.
Plughat soils: have lithic contact at depths of 40 to 60 inches (100 to 150 cm).
Villegreen soils: have lithic contact at depths of 20 to 40 inches (50 to 100 cm).
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING:
Parent material: alluvium derived from red fine grained sandstone and shale.
Landform: fan remnants, plains
Slope: 1 to 9 percent
Elevation: 4,300 to 5,200 feet (1300 to 1600 meters).
Mean annual temperature: 50 to 54 degrees F (10 to 12 degrees C)
Mean annual precipitation: 14 to 18 inches (350 to 460 mm)
Precipitation pattern: peak periods May through August, dry December through February.
Frost-free period: 135 to 180 days.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: This is the Rizozo series. Rizozo soils are dry in the soil moisture control section for longer periods of time and are very shallow and shallow to sandstone (lithic contact) and are on predominantly south-facing scarps.
DRAINAGE AND SATURATED HYDRAULIC CONDUCTIVITY: Well drained, runoff low at slopes of 1 to 5 percent and medium for slopes of 5 to 9 percent, saturated hydraulic conductivity is moderately high.
USE AND VEGETATION: These soils are used as rangeland and irrigated cropland. The potential plant community is dominantly blue grama, western wheatgrass, sideoats grama, galleta, yucca and prickly pear cactus.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: northeast New Mexico and southeastern Colorado; LRR G, MLRA 70; the series is of moderate extent.
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Temple, Texas
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Las Animas County, Colorado, 2007. The name means cliff in Spanish.
REMARKS: This series was formerly included in the Alicia series. Alicia soils have a soil moisture control section that is dry for longer periods of time and do not have argillic horizons.
Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:
Series control section: 0 to 62 inches (0 to 158 cm).
Particle-size control section: 15 to 35 inches (38 to 88 cm). (Btk1 and part of the Btk2 horizons)
Ochric epipedon: 0 to 4 inches (0 to 10 cm). (A horizon)
Cambic horizon: 4 to 15 inches (10 to 38 cm). (Bw horizons)
Argillic horizon: 15 to 62 inches (38 to158 cm). (Btk1, Btk2, Btk3 and Btk4 horizons)
Calcic horizon: 15 to 62 inches (38 to158 cm). (Btk1, Btk2, Btk3 and Btk4 horizons)
Remarks: 2/2004 WAW Added clay loam texture for Btk, corrected spelling of Kucu competing series.
10/2007 WAW Added metric units, edited parent materials and landform terminology.
The assignment of the cation-exchange activity class is inferred from lab data from similar soils in the surrounding area.
Taxonomic Version: Keys to Soil Taxonomy, Tenth Edition, 2006
ADDITIONAL DATA: National Soil Survey Laboratory Pedon Number 03N0750 is from the type location.