LOCATION CALVES CT

Established Series
BEF-CEP-DCP
12/2024

CALVES SERIES

MLRA(s)--144A, 145
Depth class--Very deep
Drainage Class--Very poorly drained
Saturated Hydraulic Conductivity--low to high
Parent material--Coarse-loamy estuarine deposits
Geomorphic location--Tidal marshes within Estuaries, Coastal Lowlands, and tidal Rivers
Slope range for series--0 to 1 percent
Mean annual air temperature--10 degrees C (50 degrees F)
Mean annual precipitation--1295 millimeters (51 inches)

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Coarse-loamy, mixed, superactive, nonacid, mesic Histic Sulfaquents

TYPICAL PEDON: Calves mucky peat on a linear, zero percent slope in a tidal marsh. (Colors are for moist soil unless otherwise noted).

Oese--0 to 9 centimeters; black (10YR 2/1) broken face, very dark brown (10YR 2/2) mucky peat; 50 percent fibers, 35 percent rubbed; H5 von Post humification; 30 percent mineral soil material; slight reaction to 30 percent hydrogen peroxide; moderately acid (pH 5.9), moderately acid (pH 6.0) oxidized pH; clear boundary.

Oise1--9 to 16 centimeters; dark brown (10YR 3/3) broken face, very dark grayish brown (10YR 3/2) peat; 95 percent fibers, 85 percent rubbed; H3 von Post humification; slight reaction to 30 percent hydrogen peroxide; extremely acid (pH 4.3), extremely acid (pH 3.5) oxidized pH; clear boundary.

Oise2--16 to 28 centimeters; very dark gray (10YR 3/1) broken face, peat; 70 percent fibers, 50 percent rubbed; H4 von Post humification; slight reaction to 30 percent hydrogen peroxide; extremely acid (pH 4.0), ultra acid (pH 3.4) oxidized pH; clear boundary. (Combined thickness of the O horizons are 20 to 39 centimeters)

Cseg--28 to 47 centimeters; dark gray (5Y 4/1) broken face fine sandy loam; massive; nonfluid; 15 percent plant fibers; strongly acid (pH 5.5), extremely acid (pH 3.6) oxidized pH; clear boundary.

Asegb--47 to 61 centimeters; very dark gray (2.5Y 3/1) broken face fine sandy loam; massive; moderately fluid; 20 percent plant fibers; slight reaction to 30 percent hydrogen peroxide; very strongly acid (pH 4.8), extremely acid (pH 3.8) oxidized pH; clear boundary.

C'seg--61 to 200 centimeters; dark gray (5Y 4/1) broken face fine sandy loam; massive; slightly fluid; 8 percent plant fibers; slight reaction to 30 percent hydrogen peroxide; moderately acid (pH 5.8), extremely acid (pH 3.7) oxidized pH.

TYPE LOCATION: Middlesex County, Town of Essex, Connecticut; Great Meadow Marsh in North Cove at Foxboro Point on the Connecticut River, approximately 920 feet southeast of intersection of River Road and Great Meadow Road and approximately 650 feet southwest of the Pettipaug Yacht Club office building. USGS topographic quadrangle: Essex, CT

Latitude--41.3744440
Longitude-- -72.3858060
Datum--WGS84
Coordinates source--from hand-held GPS

RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Depth to bedrock--Greater than 200 centimeters
Soil moisture--Saturated; Peraquic moisture regime
Reaction throughout--ultra acid to neutral (pH <3.5 to 7.3)
Oxidized reaction-ultra acid or slightly alkaline (pH <3.5 to 7.8)
Electrical conductivity (EC1:5 water)--greater than 0.6 dS/m throughout
Depth to hypersulfidic materials (incubated pH 4.0 or less)--0 to 50 centimeters
Wood fragments--0 to 5 percent, by volume
Coarse fragments--0 to 50 percent fine and medium gravels, by volume in individual horizons
Total Soil Organic Carbon Stock--10 to 64 kg m-2

Oa, Oase, Oe, Oese, Oi, or Oise horizon
Hue-2.5Y, 5Y, or 10YR
Value-2.5 to 4
Chroma-1 to 3
Texture-muck, mucky peat, or peat
Horizon Organic Carbon Density--23 to 46 kg m-3

Aseg or Asegb horizon (where present)
Hue--2.5Y, 5Y or N
Value-2.5 to 3
Chrome-0 to 1
Texture--mucky fine sandy loam, fine sandy loam, loam, mucky silt loam
Manner of failure/fluidity class--slightly fluid to moderately fluid
Horizon Organic Carbon Density--31 to 59 kg m-3

Cseg horizon
Hue--2.5Y, 5Y, 10Y, or N
Value-2.5 to 5
Chroma--0 to 3
Texture-silt loam, very fine sandy loam, sandy loam, loamy fine sand, ; range includes through very fine sandy loam and their mucky analogs, some pedons contain thin sandy horizons.
Horizon Organic Carbon Density--8 to 54 kg m-3
Clay content-5 to 25 percent
Manner of failure / fluidity class--nonfluid to very fluid
Coarse fragments--0 to 50 percent fine and medium gravels, by volume

COMPETING SERIES:
There are no competing series in the same family.

GEOGRAPHIC SETTING:
Parent material--Loamy estuarine deposits
Landscape--Estuaries, Coastal Lowlands, and Tidal Rivers
Landform--Tidal marshes
Slope--0 to 1 percent
Mean annual precipitation--1023 to 1320 millimeters (40 to 52 inches)
Mean annual air temperature--4 to 13 degrees C (39.2 to 55.4 degrees F)
Frost-free period--180 to 225 days

GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS:
These are the Ipswich, Matunuck, Oyster River, Pawcatuck, Quinnipiac, and Westbrook soils.

Ipswich soils--formed in thick deposits hemic organic soil materials
Matunuck soils--formed in sandier materials and have not been mapped in Connecticut
Oyster River soils--have buried diagnostic O horizons 40 centimeters or more thick below mineral soil surface horizons
Pawcatuck soils--formed in hemic organic soil materials over sandy mineral soil materials
Quinnipiac soils--formed in loamy alluvium with no histic epipedon.
Westbrook soils--formed in hemic organic soil materials over loamy mineral soil materials

DRAINAGE AND SATURATED HYDRAULIC CONDUCTIVITY:
Drainage class--Very poorly drained
Saturated hydraulic conductivity--Low to High
Soil moisture regime-Peraquic
Flooded twice daily by tides in addition to periodic riverine flooding at times.

USE AND VEGETATION:
Major uses--Most areas are in salt marsh and provide food and habitat for fish, shellfish and wildfowl. Small, scattered areas are in saltgrass hay.
Vegetation--Phragmites australis, Spartina alterniflora, Spartina patens, and Salicornia spp. may occur on these soils.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT:
General area--These soils are located along Connecticut coast.
Land Resource Regions--R - Northeastern Forage and Forest Region
MLRA(s)--144A, 145
Extent--Small

SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (SSRO) RESPONSIBLE: SPECIAL PROJECTS OFFICE

SERIES ESTABLISHED: Middlesex County, Connecticut, 2024.

REMARKS:

Diagnostic horizons and features in this pedon include--
Peraquic feature--Zero or positive soil water potential at the soil surface.
Particle-size control section--The zone from 28 to 100 centimeters (Cseg, Asegb and C'seg horizons).
Histic epipedon--The zone from 0 to 28 centimeters (Oese and Oise horizons).
Hemic soil materials--The zone from 0 to 9 centimeters (Oese horizon).
Fibric soil materials--the zone from 9 to 28 centimeters (Oise horizons).
Hypersulfidic materials--The zone from 9 to 200 centimeters (Oise, Cseg, Asegb, and C'seg horizons) have oxidized reactions with pH values less than 4 after 16 weeks.
Fluidity Class--Slightly fluid or moderately fluid, the zone from 47 to 200 centimeters (Asegb and C'seg horizons)

Taxonomic version--Keys to Soil Taxonomy, 13th edition (2022)

ADDITIONAL DATA: Type location taken from S2023CT007212 in Great Meadow Marsh, Essex, CT. Additional support pedons used to develop this series include and S2023CT001245, S2023CT001251, and S2023CT001287 .
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National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.