LOCATION BURSAW                  MI

Established Series
JKC-GDW-JFH
06/2011

BURSAW SERIES

The Bursaw series consist of very deep, moderately well drained soils formed in gravelly deposits over dense till on lake beach ridges. Saturated hydraulic conductivity is very high in the gravelly materials and low in the loamy materials. Slopes range from 0 to 6 percent. Mean annual precipitation is about 760 millimeters, and mean annual temperature is about 5 degrees C.

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Sandy-skeletal, mixed, frigid Oxyaquic Udorthents

TYPICAL PEDON: Bursaw extremely gravelly coarse sand, in an area of Bursaw-Beavertail complex, 0 to 6 percent slopes at an elevation of 183 meters in a forested area. (Colors are for moist soils unless otherwise stated.)

Oe--0 to 10 centimeters; partially decomposed forest litter; neutral.

C1--10 to 41 centimeters; yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) extremely gravelly coarse sand; single grain; loose; common roots; about 60 percent gravel, about 10 percent cobbles; neutral; gradual wavy boundary. (18 to 51 centimeters thick)

C2--41 to 124 centimeters; brown (10YR 5/3) extremely gravelly coarse sand; single grain; loose; common roots; common medium distinct yellowish brown (10YR 5/6) iron accumulations below 51 centimeters; about 60 percent gravel, about 10 percent cobbles; slightly alkaline; slight effervescence; abrupt wavy boundary. (51 to 100 centimeters thick)

2Cd--124 to 203 centimeters; brown (10YR 5/3) gravelly sandy loam; moderate medium platy structure; firm; about 12 percent gravel and about 5 percent cobbles; moderately alkaline; strong effervescence.

TYPE LOCATION: Major Land Resource Area 94B Michigan Eastern Upper Peninsula Sandy Drift, Schoolcraft County Michigan Subset; about 7 miles south of Thompson; 1100 feet south and 2380 feet west of the northeast corner of sec. 11, T. 39 N., R. 17 W. USGS Point Aux Barques topographic quadrangle; latitude 45 degrees 47 minutes 30 seconds N. and longitude 86 degrees 21 minutes 53 seconds W.; Thompson Township.

RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Depth to free carbonates - 8 to 51 centimeters
Depth to redoximorphic features - 51 to 102 centimeters

Bw horizon (when present):
Hue - 10YR or 7.5YR
Value - 4 or 5
Chroma - 3 to 5
Texture - extremely gravelly coarse sand, extremely gravelly sand, very gravely sand

C horizons:
Hue - 10YR or 7.5YR
Value - 4 to 6
Chroma - 2 to 6
Texture - extremely gravelly coarse sand, extremely gravelly sand, very gravely sand
Gravel content - 35 to 75 percent
Cobble and stone content - 5 to 15 percent
Reaction - neutral to moderately alkaline
Some pedons have buried Oa, Oe, or A horizons.

2Cd horizon:
Hue - 10YR or 7.5YR
Chroma - 2 to 6
Texture - gravelly sandy loam or gravelly fine sandy loam
Gravel content - 10 to 25 percent
Cobble and stone content - 2 to 10 percent
Reaction - slightly alkaline or moderately alkaline

COMPETING SERIES: This is the Skog series. Skog soils have a substratum with pH of moderately acid to slightly acid and have less than 10 percent combined silt and clay between 100 and 200 centimeters.

GEOGRAPHIC SETTING:
Landform - nearly level to gently rolling beach ridges adjacent to the shores of Lake Michigan.
Slope - 0 to 6 percent
Elevation - 178 to 185 meters
Mean annual precipitation - 710 to 810 millimeters
Mean annual air temperature - 3 to 5 degrees C.
Frost free period - 90 to 155 days

GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Alpena, Beavertail, Esau, and Shuberts soils.
Alpena - are on slightly higher landscape positions, and have no water saturation to depths of 152 centimeters.
Beavertail - are in swales and depressions, and water saturation from 0 to 30 centimeters from October to June.
Esau are on slightly lower landscape positions, and water saturation from 15 to 46 centimeters from November to May.
Shuberts - are in swales and depressions, and water saturation at or near the surface from March to May and October to November.

DRAINAGE AND SATURATED HYDRAULIC CONDUCTIVITY:
Drainage class water saturation occurs from 51 to 102 centimeters below the surface in October, November, March, April, May, and June (moderately well drained).
Runoff - very low
Saturated hydraulic conductivity - very high in the gravelly materials and low in the loamy materials.

USE AND VEGETATION: Bursaw soils are forested. Primary tree species include northern white cedar, red maple, balsam fir, and paper birch.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT:
Physiographic Division
--Interior Plains
Physiographic Province
--Central Lowland
Physiographic Section
--Eastern Lake
Land Resource Region
--Northern Lake States Forest and Forage region (LRR K)
Major Land Resource Area
--Michigan Eastern Upper Peninsula Sandy Drift (MLRA 94B)

The series is of small extent.

MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: St. Paul, Minnesota

SERIES ESTABLISHED: Major Land Resource Area 94B Michigan Eastern Upper Peninsula Sandy Drift; Schoolcraft County Michigan Subset, December 2006.
Proposed in Schoolcraft Subset, Michigan, 2002. Source of name is a marsh in Schoolcraft County, Michigan.

REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in the typical pedon are: Ochric epipedon - 0 to 10 centimeters
Redoximorphic features at 51 centimeters

ADDITIONAL DATA: Refer to S02MI-153-040 for NSSL data on reference pedon. The pedon descriptions supporting this series concept are stored in NASIS.

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National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.