LOCATION BLACKCAN NV

Established Series
Rev. BKP/JBF
06/2016

BLACKCAN SERIES

The Blackcan series consists of shallow to a duripan, well drained soils that formed in alluvium derived from welded tuff and basalt with minor amounts of quartzite and limestone. Blackcan soils are on fan remnants and ballenas. Slopes are 2 to 30 percent. The mean annual precipitation is 230 mm and the mean annual temperature is about 10 degrees C.

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

TYPICAL PEDON: Blackcan very gravelly sandy loam--rangeland. (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise noted.) The soil surface is covered with about 50 percent gravel and 10 percent cobbles.

A--0 to 10 cm; pale brown (10YR 6/3) very gravelly sandy loam, dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) moist; strong very thick platy structure parting to moderate very thin platy; slightly hard, friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; common very fine and few fine roots; common very fine vesicular pores; 30 percent gravel and 5 percent cobbles; 11 percent calcium carbonate equivalent; violently effervescent; strongly alkaline (pH 8.5); abrupt smooth boundary. (5 to 10 cm thick)

Bk--10 to 18 cm; yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) very gravelly sandy loam, dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) moist; moderate medium subangular blocky structure; soft, very friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; common very fine and fine, and few medium roots; common very fine tubular pores; 45 percent gravel; 16 percent calcium carbonate equivalent; many (20 percent) fine (less than 2 mm) secondary calcium carbonate concretions on the bottom of rock fragments; violently effervescent; moderately alkaline (pH 8.4); abrupt smooth boundary. (8 to 41 cm thick)

Bqk--18 to 36 cm; yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) very gravelly sandy loam, dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) moist; moderate medium subangular blocky structure; soft, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; few fine and medium roots; few very fine and common fine irregular pores; 45 percent gravel; 20 percent calcium carbonate equivalent; many (20 percent) fine (less than 2 mm) secondary calcium carbonate and silica concretions around rock fragments; discontinuous lenses of very coarse (2 to 3 cm), very pale brown (10YR 8/2) indurated material cemented by secondary silica and calcium carbonate; violently effervescent; moderately alkaline (pH 8.3); very abrupt smooth boundary. (10 to 25 cm thick)

Bqkm1--36 to 66 cm; very pale brown (10YR 8/2) cemented material, light gray (10YR 7/2) moist; massive; very rigid; indurated by secondary silica and calcium carbonate; violently effervescent; gradual smooth boundary. (25 to 46 cm thick)

Bqkm2--66 to 92 cm; very pale brown (10YR 8/2) cemented material, light gray (10YR 7/2) moist; moderate thick platy structure; extremely hard, slightly rigid; strongly cemented by secondary silica and calcium carbonate; violently effervescent; gradual smooth boundary. (25 to 61 cm thick)

Bqkm3--92 to 152 cm; very pale brown (10YR 8/2) cemented material, light gray (10YR 7/2) moist; massive; very hard, extremely firm; moderately cemented by secondary silica and calcium carbonate; violently effervescent.

TYPE LOCATION: Lincoln County, Nevada; about 13 miles west-southwest of Panaca and 10 feet southwest of jeep trail; approximately 180 feet east and 1,380 feet north of the southwest corner of section 18, T. 2 S., R. 66 E.; USGS The Bluffs 7.5 minute topographic quadrangle; latitude 37 degrees 46 minutes 16.9 seconds N and longitude 114 degrees 38 minutes 28.0 seconds W; WGS84 Decimal Degrees 37.7713611 latitude, -114.6411111 longitude.

RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Soil moisture: Usually dry, moist for short periods in winter and early spring and intermittently moist in some part for 10 to 20 days cumulative from July through September due to convection storms; aridic soil moisture regime that borders on xeric.
Mean annual soil temperature: 11 to 13 degrees C.
Depth to calcic horizon: 5 to 10 cm.
Depth to duripan: 36 to 50 cm.
Reaction: Moderately alkaline or strongly alkaline.
Mineralogy: 12 to 25 percent volcanic glass in the 0.02 to 2 mm fraction and averages 0.01 to 0.09 percent Al plus Fe, extracted by ammonium oxalate.

Particle-size control section - Clay content: 8 to 18 percent.
Rock fragments: 35 to 60 percent, mostly gravel with 0 to 10 percent cobbles; Fragments consist of broken pan fragments, and a mixture of limestone, welded tuff, and quartzite.

A horizon
Value: 4 through 6 dry.
Chroma: 3 or 4, dry or moist.
Calcium carbonate equivalent: 5 to 15 percent.

Bk horizon
Value: 5 or 6 dry, 3 through 5 moist.
Chroma: 3 or 4, dry or moist.
Clay content: 12 to 18 percent.
Rock fragments: 35 to 80 percent.
Texture: very gravelly sandy loam and extremely gravelly sandy loam.
Calcium carbonate equivalent: 10 to 20 percent.
Effervescence: Strongly effervescent or violently effervescent.

Bqk horizon
Value: 5 through 7 dry, 4 or 5 moist.
Chroma: 3 or 4, dry or moist.
Clay content: 6 to 12 percent.
Rock fragments: 45 to 80 percent.
Calcium carbonate equivalent: 15 to 25 percent.
Effervescence: Strongly effervescent or violently effervescent.

Bqkm horizons
Value: 7 or 8 dry, 7 or 8 moist.
Chroma: 1 through 3, dry or moist.
Other features: Some pedons have sub-horizons that are indurated by secondary calcium carbonate.

COMPETING SERIES: These are the Gravden, Gunnel, Jericho, Karpp, Lien, and Rekima series.

Gravden, Gunnel, Karpp, and Rekima soils are not intermittently moist for 10 to 20 days cumulative from July through September due to convection storms. Jericho soils have a duripan that ranges less than 51 cm in thickness and also have C horizons. Lien soils have a duripan that ranges less than 51 cm in thickness and the mean annual soil temperature is 8.5 to 11 degrees C.

GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Blackcan soils are on fan remnants and ballenas. They typically occur on summit and shoulder positions. These soils formed in alluvium derived from welded tuff and basalt with minor amounts of quartzite and limestone. Slopes are 2 to 30 percent. Elevations range from 1,494 to 2,073 meters. The mean annual precipitation is 200 to 250 mm, the mean annual temperature is 7 to 11 degrees C, and the frost-free period is 100 to 130 days.

GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Geer, Kyler, and Ursine soils. Geer soils are located on fan skirts and inset fans, and do not have a duripan. Kyler soils are on hills and mountains and are shallow to a lithic contact. Ursine soils are on fan remnants, are shallow to a duripan, and have carbonatic mineralogy.

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

USE AND VEGETATION: Blackcan soils are used for livestock grazing and wildlife habitat. The potential native vegetation includes black sagebrush, Nevada ephedra, Indian ricegrass, and galleta. This pedon is correlated to ecological site R029XY008NV, Shallow Calcareous Loam 8-12 P.Z.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: East-central Nevada. These soils are not extensive with about 7,100 acres of the series mapped to date. MLRA 29.

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

SERIES ESTABLISHED: Lincoln County, Nevada, North Part, 2006. The name is coined from Black Canyon which is present in the area.

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 Bk horizons).
Calcic horizon - The zone from 10 to 36 cm (Bk and Bqk horizons).
Duripan - The zone from 36 to 152 cm (Bqkm1, Bqkm2, and Bqkm3 horizons).
Particle-size control section - The zone from the soil surface to 36 cm (A, Bk, and Bqk horizons).

ADDITIONAL DATA: The typical pedon at the series type location has full characterization data by the Soil Survey Laboratory (SSL), Lincoln, NE, as pedon ID S05NV-017-009 (pedon # 05N0671).
Previous authors and editors include: JWM/CWL/TM/JVC.

National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.