LOCATION DEVILS                  NV

Established Series
Rev. WMA/RPZ/JBF
01/2023

DEVILS SERIES

The Devils series consists of moderately deep, well drained soils on plateaus. They formed in residuum and local alluvium from andesite. Slopes are 4 to 30 percent. Mean annual temperature is about 6 degrees C. and the mean annual precipitation is about 360 mm.

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Loamy-skeletal, mixed, superactive, frigid Aridic Argixerolls

TYPICAL PEDON: Devils extremely cobbly loam, rangeland. (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise noted).

A1--0 to 3 cm; grayish brown (10YR 5/2) extremely cobbly loam, very dark grayish brown (10YR 3/2) moist; moderate medium and thin platy structure; slightly hard, very friable, nonsticky and slightly plastic; common very fine roots; many fine and very fine vesicular pores; 30 percent gravel, 25 percent cobbles, 5 percent stones; neutral (pH 7.2); abrupt smooth boundary. (3 to 8 cm thick)

A2--3 to 8 cm thick; grayish brown (10YR 5/2) very cobbly loam, very dark grayish brown (10YR 3/2) moist; moderate fine subangular blocky structure; slightly hard, very friable, nonsticky and slightly plastic; many fine and very fine roots; many fine and very fine vesicular pores; 20 percent gravel, 15 percent cobbles, 5 percent stones; neutral (pH 7.2); clear smooth boundary. (3 to 8 cm thick)

A3--8 to 18 cm; brown (10YR 4/3) very cobbly loam, very dark grayish brown (10YR 3/2) moist; moderate fine subangular blocky structure; slightly hard, very friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; many fine and very fine roots; many very fine interstitial pores; 20 percent gravel, 15 percent cobbles, 5 percent stones; neutral (pH 7.2); clear smooth boundary. (5 to 15 cm thick)

Bt1--18 to 23 cm; brown (10YR 4/3) cobbly loam, dark brown (10YR 3/3) moist; moderate medium and fine subangular blocky structure; hard, friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; few medium and common fine roots; many fine and very fine tubular pores; 20 percent gravel, 10 percent cobbles, few faint clay films lining pores; neutral (pH 7.2); clear smooth boundary. (5 to 10 cm thick)

Bt2--23 to 46 cm; brown (7.5YR 5/4) very gravelly clay loam, brown (7.5YR 4/4) moist; strong medium subangular blocky structure; very hard, firm, moderately sticky moderately and plastic; few medium and common fine roots; common very fine tubular pores; 25 percent gravel, 10 percent cobbles, 5 percent stones; many distinct clay films lining pores and on peds; neutral (pH 7.2); clear wavy boundary. (15 to 30 cm thick)

Bt3--46 to 56 cm; yellowish brown (10YR 5/4) very gravelly clay loam, dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) moist; moderate medium angular blocky structure; very hard, firm, moderately sticky and moderately plastic; few medium and fine roots; few fine tubular pores; 30 percent gravel, 10 percent cobbles, 5 percent stones; many distinct clay films lining pores and on peds; neutral (pH 7.2); abrupt wavy boundary. (0 to 15 cm thick)

Cr--56 cm; weathered andesitic bedrock with some clay coatings and root mats in fractures.

TYPE LOCATION: Lyon County, Nevada; 4 1/2 miles east of junction of State Highway 22 and Risue road; 2,900 feet south and 1,200 feet west of the northeast corner of section 13, T. 8 N., R. 25 E.; USGS Nye Canyon 7.5 minute topographic quadrangle; latitude 38 degrees, 33 minutes, 9 seconds N and longitude 119 degrees, 7 minutes, 54 seconds W; WGS84 Decimal Degrees 38.5525000 latitude, -119.1316667 longitude.

RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Soil moisture - Moist from late fall through early summer, dry late June through October. Aridic moisture regime bordering on xeric.
Soil temperature - 7 to 8 degrees C.
Mollic epipedon thickness - 18 to 30 cm.
Solum thickness - 50 to 76 cm.
Depth to bedrock: Paralithic contact 50 to 91 cm, hard bedrock may occur at any depth below 100 cm.
Reaction: Neutral or slightly acid

Particle-size control section - Clay content: Averages 27 to 35 percent.
Rock fragments: 35 to 60 percent; mostly gravel with 10 to 20 percent cobbles and stones.

A horizons
Value: 4 or 5 dry, 2 or 3 moist.
Chroma: 2 or 3.
Structure: Platy or granular.

B2t horizons
Hue: 7.5YR or 10YR.
Value: 4 or 5 dry, 3 or 4 moist.
Chroma: 3 or 4.
Structure: Angular or subangular blocky.
Other features: Clay films are common or continuous, faint to prominent.

COMPETING SERIES: These are the Belate, Burnborough, Closkey, Gowjai, Granpeak, Jivas, Millan, Sumine, and Torro series.
Belate, Burnborough, Millan and Torro soils lack bedrock within 152 cm. Closkey soils have 18 to 27 percent clay in the particle-size control section. Gowjai Granpeak and Jivas soils are 100 to 150 cm to bedrock. Sumine soils lack a paralithic contact.

GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Devils soils are on plateaus and have convex surfaces. Slopes are 4 to 30 percent. The soils formed in residuum and local colluvium from basic igneous rocks. Elevations are 2,400 to 2,900 meters. The mean annual temperature is 6 to 7 degrees C. The mean annual precipitation is 300 to 400 mm. Frost-free season is 80 to l00 days.

GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Fulstone Variant and Glean soils. Fulstone Variant soils have a duripan and an argillic horizon with more than 35 percent clay. Glean soils are very deep, lack an argillic horizon and have a mollic epipedon more than 50 cm thick.

DRAINAGE AND SATURATED HYDRAULIC CONDUCTIVITY: Well drained; slow or medium runoff; slow permeability; moderately high saturated hydraulic conductivity.

USE AND VEGETATION: Livestock grazing, wildlife habitat, and watershed. Native vegetation is low sagebrush, Nevada bluegrass, and western needlegrass.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Western Nevada. The soils are not extensive. MLRA 26.

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

SERIES ESTABLISHED: Lyon County Area, Nevada, 1981.

REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:
Mollic epipedon - The zone from the surface to 18 cm (A1, A2, and A3 horizons).
Argillic horizon - The zone from 8 to 56 cm (Bt1, Bt2 and Bt3 horizons).
Paralithic contact - The zone at 56 cm (Cr layer).
Particle-size control section - The zone from 8 to 56 cm (Bt1, Bt2 and Bt3 horizons).

---

National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.