LOCATION BETSY BAY MI
Established Series
Rev. KRW-LMC-JJJ
06/2011
BETSY BAY SERIES
The Betsy Bay series consists of moderately deep or deep, somewhat poorly drained soils on sandstone bedrock lake benches. These soils formed in sandy beach deposits or sandy residuum from the sandstone. Permeability is rapid in the sandy material and moderately slow in the sandstone bedrock. Slope ranges from 0 to 3 percent. Mean annual precipitation is about 34 inches and mean annual air temperature is about 41 degrees F.
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Mixed, frigid Typic Psammaquents
TYPICAL PEDON: Betsy Bay sand on a 2 percent south facing slope in a forested area.
Oe--0 to 1 inch; very dark brown (10YR 2/2); partially decomposed forest litter. (0 to 3 inches thick)
E1--1 to 14 inches; light brownish gray (10YR 6/2) sand, light gray (10YR 7/2) dry; weak coarse subangular blocky structure; very friable; many very fine and fine roots; strongly acid; gradual wavy boundary.
E2--14 to 18 inches; brown (10YR 5/3) sand, light brownish gray (10YR 6/2) dry; single grain; loose; few very fine roots; strongly acid; clear wavy boundary. (Combined thickness of the E horizon is 5 to 20 inches thick.)
Bw--18 to 26 inches; dark brown (10YR 3/3) sand; single grain; loose; common medium distinct very pale brown (10YR 7/4) iron depletions; 2 percent sandstone flags; moderately acid; gradual wavy boundary. (4 to 18 inches thick)
C--26 to 43 inches; brown (10YR 4/3) flaggy sand; single grain; loose; common medium distinct light yellowish brown (10YR 6/4) masses of iron accumulation; 20 percent sandstone flags; strongly acid. (0 to 20 inches thick)
R--43 inches; yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) weathered sandstone bedrock; strongly acid.
TYPE LOCATION: Keweenaw County, Michigan, about 100 feet north and 800 feet west of the southeast corner of Sec. 3, T. 57 N., R. 29 W., Grant Township; USGS Point Isabelle 7.5 minute topographic quadrangle; lat. 47 degrees 21 minutes 32 seconds N. and long. 87 degrees 57 minutes 50.59 seconds W.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS: Depth to bedrock ranges from 30 to 50 inches. The texture is fine sand or sand. Textures in the transitional layer to bedrock include loamy fine sand and fine sandy loam. Gravel and cobble content ranges from 0 to 10 percent and flagstones range from 0 to 25 percent in the upper part and 0 to 40 percent in the lower part. Reaction ranges from strongly acid to moderately acid.
The E horizon has value of 4 to 6, and chroma of 2 or 3. Texture is sand, fine sand or loamy sand.
The Bw horizon has hue of 7.5YR or 10YR, value of 3 to 6 and chroma of 2 to 8. Texture is sand, fine sand, coarse sand, loamy sand or flaggy analogs of these textures.
The C horizon has hue of 2.5YR to 10YR, value of 4 or 5, and chroma of 3 or 4. Texture is sand, fine sand, loamy fine sand or fine sandy loam or flaggy or very flaggy analogs of these textures.
The R horizon has hue of 2.5YR to 10YR, value of 4 to 6, and chroma of 3 or 4.
COMPETING SERIES: There are the
Bantry,
Deford,
Gunbarrel,
Minnewaukan, and
Spidercreek series. None of these soils have a lithic contact within the series control section.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Betsy Bay soils are on sandstone bedrock lake benches. These soils formed in sandy beach deposits or sandy residuum from the sandstone. Slope ranges from 0 to 3 percent. Mean annual precipitation ranges from 30 to 36 inches and mean annual air temperature ranges from 40 to 45 degrees F.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the
Deford, AuGres,
Burt, and
Jacobsville soils. The poorly and very poorly drained, very deep Deford, moderately deep Jacobsville and shallow Burt soils are on lower landscape positions. The very deep Au Gres soils are in landscape positions similar to those of the Betsy Bay soils.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Somewhat poorly drained. Permeability is rapid in the sandy material and moderately slow in the sandstone bedrock.
USE AND VEGETATION: Most areas are forested with tamarack, black spruce, paper birch, alder, quacking aspen, balsam fir, northern white cedar and red maple being the major species.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Northwestern part of the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, primarily on the Keweenaw Peninsula. The series is of small extent.
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: St. Paul, Minnesota.
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Keweenaw, Michigan, 2004. Source of name is a bay on Lake Superior.
REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in the pedon are:
Ochric epipedon: 1 to 18 inches (E1,E2);
Lithic contact: 43 inches (2R);
Particle size control section: 10 to 40 inches.
Only series status, responsibility, and scriveners errors changed - 3/09.
ADDITIONAL DATA: For laboratory data on the typical pedon refer to S00MI-083-003 from the NSSL
National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.