LOCATION BIKEN NV

Established Series
Rev. JVC/JBF
11/2016

BIKEN SERIES

The Biken series consists of shallow, well drained soils that formed in alluvium derived from mixed rocks over residuum weathered from tuff and tuffaceous sandstone. Biken soils are on rock pediments and hills. Slopes are 2 to 30 percent. The mean annual precipitation is about 250 mm and the mean annual temperature is about 8 degrees C.

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Loamy-skeletal, mixed, superactive, mesic, shallow Xeric Haplocalcids

TYPICAL PEDON: Biken very gravelly fine sandy loam--rangeland. (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise noted.) The soil surface is partially covered with approximately 20 percent gravel.

A--0 to 8 cm; light brownish gray (10YR 6/2) very gravelly fine sandy loam, brown (10YR 4/3) moist; weak thin platy structure; soft, very friable, slightly sticky and nonplastic; few very fine roots; common very fine interstitial pores; 40 percent gravel; slightly effervescent; strongly alkaline (pH 8.6); clear smooth boundary. (5 to 13 cm thick)

Bkq1--8 to 23 cm; pale brown (10YR 6/3) very gravelly fine sandy loam, brown (10YR 4/3) moist; weak fine subangular blocky structure; soft, very friable, slightly sticky and nonplastic; many very fine, common fine roots; common very fine and fine tubular pores; 45 percent gravel and 5 percent cobbles; violently effervescent; many calcium carbonate and silica pendants on bottoms of gravel; strongly alkaline (pH 8.6); clear smooth boundary. (10 to 23 cm thick)

Bkq2--23 to 46 cm; light gray (10YR 7/2) very gravelly fine sandy loam, light brownish gray (10YR 6/2) moist; weak fine subangular blocky structure; slightly hard, friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; few medium and coarse roots; common very fine tubular pores; 40 percent gravel and 10 percent cobbles; violently effervescent; many calcium carbonate and silica pendants on bottoms of gravel; strongly alkaline (pH 8.8); abrupt wavy boundary. (15 to 28 cm thick)

Cr--46 to 76 cm; light brownish gray (10YR 6/2) partially weathered tuffaceous sandstone, dark grayish brown (10YR 4/2) moist; massive; hard, firm; slightly effervescent; clear wavy boundary. (15 to 46 cm thick)

R--76 cm; light brownish gray (10YR 6/2) compact tuffaceous bedrock.

TYPE LOCATION: White Pine County, Nevada; about 20 miles southwest of Ely; approximately 1,360 feet south and 500 feet west of the northeast corner of section 4, T. 13 N., R. 61 E.; USGS Preston Reservoir 7.5 minute topographic quadrangle; latitude 39 degrees 01 minutes 18 seconds N and longitude 115 degrees 06 minutes 48 seconds W; WGS84 Decimal Degrees 39.0216667 latitude, -115.1133333 longitude.

RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Soil moisture: Usually moist in winter and spring, dry in summer and fall; aridic moisture regime that borders on xeric.
Mean annual soil temperature: 8 to 11 degrees C.
Ochric epipedon thickness: 5 to 13 cm.
Depth to calcic horizon: 5 to 13 cm.
Depth to bedrock: 36 to 50 cm to a paralithic contact. The paralithic materials below the contact are weathered tuff or tuffaceous sandstone. Hard bedrock is usually within 90 cm of the soil surface.

Particle-size control section - Clay content: 8 to 18 percent.
Rock fragments: 35 to 60 percent, dominantly gravel.

A horizon
Value: 5 or 6 dry, 4 or 5 moist.
Chroma: 2 or 3, dry or moist.
Calcium carbonate equivalent: 10 to 20 percent.

Bkq horizons
Value: 5 through 7 dry, 4 through 6 moist.
Chroma: 2 or 3, dry or moist.
Texture: Fine sandy loam, sandy loam, or loam.
Modifier: Very gravelly.
Consistence: Soft or slightly hard dry, very friable or friable moist.
Calcium carbonate equivalent: 15 to 20 percent.
Other features: Some pedons have thin discontinuous laminae of calcium carbonate and silica-cemented soil material.

COMPETING SERIES: There are currently no other series in this family.

GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Biken soils are on rock pediments and hills. These soils formed in alluvium derived from mixed rocks over residuum weathered from tuff and tuffaceous sandstone. Slopes are 2 to 30 percent. Elevations range from 1,830 to 2,200 meters. The climate is semiarid with cool, moist winters and warm, dry summers. The mean annual precipitation is 200 to 300 mm, the mean annual temperature is 8 to 9 degrees C, and the frost-free period is 100 to 120 days.

GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Izar, Palinor, and Urmafot soils. Izar soils are shallow to a lithic contact and lack calcic horizons. Palinor and Urmafot soils formed in thick alluvium and are shallow to indurated duripans.

DRAINAGE AND SATURATED HYDRAULIC CONDUCTIVITY: Well drained; high surface runoff; moderately high saturated hydraulic conductivity.

USE AND VEGETATION: Biken soils are used for livestock grazing, woodland, and wildlife habitat. The present vegetation is mainly black sagebrush, rabbitbrush, Indian ricegrass, and scattered Utah juniper.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: East-central Nevada. These soils are moderately extensive. MLRA 28B.

MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Davis, California.

SERIES ESTABLISHED: White Pine County, Nevada, Western Part, 1990.

REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:
Ochric epipedon - The zone from the soil surface to 18 cm (A and part of the Bqk1 horizons).
Calcic horizon - The zone from 8 to 46 cm (Bkq1 and Bkq2 horizons).
Paralithic contact - The boundary at 46 cm to underlying soft, weathered bedrock (Cr layer).
Particle-size control section - The zone from 25 to 46 cm (part of the Bkq2 horizon).

ADDITIONAL DATA: Previous authors include: JR-IJR-WED.

National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.