LOCATION BEAVERPASS WA

Established Series
Rev. TMR/CAB/SBC
06/2011

BEAVERPASS SERIES

The Beaverpass series consists of very deep, very poorly drained soils formed in herbaceous and woody organic deposits overlying alluvium. Beaverpass soils are found on slopes of 0 to 5 percent in valley bottoms and depressions of glaciated mountain landscapes. The mean annual precipitation is about 2,200 millimeters and the mean annual air temperature is about 5 degrees C.

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Sandy or sandy-skeletal, isotic, euic Terric Cryosaprists

TYPICAL PEDON: Beaverpass woody mucky peat, located on a southwest facing forested toeslope position with a slope of 3 percent and an elevation of 1,100 meters. When described on August 8, 2007 the soil was moist throughout. (Colors are for moist soil unless otherwise noted)

Oe1--0 to 18 cm; very dark brown (7.5YR 2.5/2) moderately decomposed needles, leaves, and twigs, dark brown (7.5YR 3/2) dry; common very fine to medium and many coarse to very coarse roots; 10 percent wood fragments; extremely acid (pH 4.3); clear wavy boundary.

Oe2--18 to 56 cm; black (7.5YR 2.5/1) woody mucky peat, very dark gray (7.5YR 3/1) dry; massive; soft, very friable, nonsticky, nonplastic; 52 percent fiber, 28 percent rubbed; few very fine to very coarse roots; common fine to medium interstitial and tubular pores; 20 percent wood fragments; extremely acid (pH 4.3); abrupt wavy boundary.

Oa--56 to 91 cm; black (7.5YR 2.5/1) herbaceous muck, very dark gray (7.5YR 3/1) dry; massive; soft, very friable, nonsticky, nonplastic; 40 percent fiber, 8 percent rubbed; few very fine roots; common fine to medium interstitial and tubular pores; strongly acid (pH 5.3); abrupt wavy boundary.

Cg1--91 to 107 cm; dark grayish brown (2.5Y 4/2) coarse sand, grayish brown (2.5Y 5/2) dry; weak medium subangular blocky structure; soft, very friable, nonsticky, nonplastic; common fine to medium interstitial pores; 100 percent reduced matrix; strongly acid (pH 5.2); abrupt wavy boundary.

Cg2--107 to 130 cm; very dark gray (10YR 3/1) fine sandy loam, gray (10YR 5/1) dry; moderate medium subangular blocky structure; soft, very friable, nonsticky, nonplastic; common fine interstitial pores; 100 percent reduced matrix; strongly acid (pH 5.2).

TYPE LOCATION: Whatcom County, Washington. Beaver Pass SnoTel site, North Cascades National Park Service Complex; 310 meters east and 890 meters south of the northwest corner of section 9, T. 39 N., R. 12 E. Willamette Meridian; Mount Redoubt, Washington USGS quadrangle; Latitude 48 degrees, 52 minutes, 19 seconds North, Longitude 121 degrees, 15 minutes, 19 seconds West; UTM 627916 meters East, 5415498 meters North, zone 10N.

RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Mean annual soil temperature: 2 to 7 degrees C. Cryic soil temperature regime.
Moisture control section: saturated for more than 30 days. Aquic soil moisture regime.
Depth to redoximorphic features: 0 to 20 cm to hemic or sapric material
Depth to mineral soil: 40 to 125 cm
Thin layers (0 to 2 cm) of diatomaceous earth and/or tephra deposits may be preserved within soil profile

Oe1 horizon
Hue - 5YR to 10YR
Value - 2 to 3 moist, 2 to 4 dry
Chroma - 1 to 3 moist or dry
Fiber content - 60 to 90 percent unrubbed and 30 to 75 percent rubbed
Reaction - very strongly acid to extremely acid
Coarse woody fragments - 0 to 15 percent total
Thickness - 15 to 25 centimeters

Oe2 horizon
Hue - 5YR to 10YR
Value - 2 to 3 moist, 2 to 4 dry
Chroma - 1 to 3 moist or dry
Fiber content - 20 to 60 percent unrubbed and 10 to 30 percent rubbed
Reaction - very strongly acid to extremely acid
Coarse woody fragments - 0 to 30 percent total
Thickness - 20 to 40 centimeters

Oa horizon
Hue - 5YR to 10YR
Value - 2 to 4 moist, 2 to 4 dry
Chroma - 1 to 3 moist or dry
Fiber content - 10 to 40 percent unrubbed and 0 to 16 percent rubbed
Reaction - strongly acid to very strongly acid
Coarse woody fragments - 0 to 30 percent total
Thickness - 30 to 60 centimeters

Cg horizons
Hue - 2.5Y or 10YR, or variegated primary mineral colors
Value - 3 to 5 moist, 4 to 6 dry
Chroma - 1 to 3 moist and dry
Texture - COS, LCOS, FSL, SL
Clay content - 0 to 10 percent
Reaction - moderately acid to strongly acid

COMPETING SERIES: There are no competing series in this family. The Grandjean series in a similar family has mixed mineralogy and all organic horizons are sapric material.

GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Beaverpass soils are found on slopes of 0 to 5 percent on valley bottoms and depressions of glaciated mountain landscapes at elevations from 900 to 2000 meters. They formed in herbaceous and woody organic deposits overlying alluvium. The climate is characterized by cool, dry summers and cold, wet winters. Mean annual precipitation ranges from 1500 to 3300 millimeters. Mean annual air temperature ranges from 2 to 8 degrees C. Frost-free season is 30 to 60 days.

GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Bacon, Chilliwack, and Spickard soils. Bacon soils do not have a histic epipedon and have a coarse-loamy particle-size control section. Chilliwack and Spickard soils are mineral soils, are well drained, and have spodic to andic soil properties in the upper part.

DRAINAGE AND SATURATED HYDRAULIC CONDUCTIVITY: Very poorly drained; moderately high to high saturated hydraulic conductivity. Depth to seasonal high water table ranges from the soil surface during spring runoff to greater than 50 centimeters prior to the onset of the autumn rainy season.

USE AND VEGETATION: Beaverpass soils are used for wildlife habitat, recreation, and watershed drainage. Native vegetation consists of coniferous, shrubby, and herbaceous mosaics including mountain hemlock, Pacific silver fir, Alaska yellow-cedar, false azalea, huckleberry (Alaskan, black, and Cascade), white-flowered rhododendron, Sitka mountain-ash, five-leaved bramble, clasping twistedstalk, and sedges.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: North Cascade Mountains, Washington. MLRA 3. Series is of small extent.

MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Portland, Oregon.

SERIES ESTABLISHED: North Cascades National Park Service Complex, Whatcom County, Washington, 2011.

REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon include:
Control Section - 0 to 130 cm
Folistic epipedon - 0 to 18 cm (Oe1 horizon)
Hemic soil materials - 18 to 56 cm (Oe2 horizon)
Sapric soil materials - 56 to 91 cm (Oa horizon)
Reduced mineral matrix - 91 to 130 cm (Cg horizons)
Slight sulfuric odor below 56 cm
More than half of the subsurface tier (30-90 cm) is composed of sapric material.

ADDITIONAL DATA: NSSL lab pedon numbers 08N0357 and 08N0317, NSSL user pedon ID's S07WA073008 and S08WA057001.

National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.