LOCATION FUEGOSTA NV

Established Series
Rev. RWW/RLB/JBF
06/2016

FUEGOSTA SERIES

The Fuegosta series consist of shallow over duripan well drained soils that formed in alluvium derived from mixed rocks. Fuegosta soils are on erosional fan remnants of fan piedmonts. Slopes are 2 to 8 percent. The mean annual precipitation is about 150 mm and the mean annual temperature is about 12 degrees C.

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Clayey, smectitic, mesic, shallow Abruptic Argidurids

TYPICAL PEDON: Fuegosta gravelly fine sandy loam--rangeland. (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise noted.) Approximately 80 percent of the soil surface is covered with gravel, 4 percent with cobbles and 1 percent with stones.

A--0 to 10 cm; light gray (10YR 7/2) gravelly fine sandy loam, light yellowish brown (10YR 6/4) moist; weak thin platy structure; soft, very friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; few very fine roots; common fine and medium vesicular pores; 25 percent gravel; strongly effervescent; strongly alkaline (pH 8.8); abrupt smooth boundary. (8 to 13 cm thick)

Bt1--10 to 20 cm; reddish brown (5YR 5/4) gravelly clay, reddish brown (5YR 4/4) moist; weak coarse prismatic structure parting to moderate fine subangular blocky; slightly hard, friable, moderately sticky and moderately plastic; common very fine roots; common very fine tubular, few very fine interstitial pores; common distinct clay films on ped faces and lining pores; 25 percent gravel; slightly effervescent; moderately alkaline (pH 8.0); clear smooth boundary. (8 to 15 cm thick)

Bt2--20 to 36 cm; reddish brown (5YR 5/4) gravelly clay, reddish brown (5YR 4/4) moist; weak coarse prismatic structure parting to moderate fine and medium subangular blocky; hard, firm, moderately sticky and moderately plastic; common very fine and few medium roots; common fine tubular pores; common distinct clay films on faces of peds and lining pores; 20 percent gravel; slightly effervescent; moderately alkaline (pH 8.0); clear smooth boundary. (13 to 18 cm thick)

Bk--36 to 46 cm; light brown (7.5YR 6/4) very gravelly sandy loam, brown (7.5YR 4/4) moist; weak fine subangular blocky structure parting to moderate thin platy; slightly hard, friable, slightly sticky and slightly nonplastic; common very fine roots; common very fine tubular pores; 35 percent gravel, mainly pan fragments; common moderately thick lime coats in seams; strongly effervescent; moderately alkaline (pH 8.2); abrupt smooth boundary (0 to 15 cm thick)

Bqkm1--46 to 66 cm; very pale brown (10YR 8/3) indurated duripan, very pale brown (10YR 7/3) moist; massive; extremely hard, extremely firm; violently effervescent; clear irregular boundary. (15 to 30 cm thick)

Bqkm2--66 to 152 cm; very pale brown (10YR 8/3) strongly silica-carbonate cemented strata up to 30 cm thick alternating with strata of extremely gravelly loamy coarse sand up to 13 cm thick, very pale brown (10YR 7/3) moist; massive; violently effervescent; moderately alkaline (pH 8.4).

TYPE LOCATION: Nye County, Nevada; 1 mile northwest of Stonewall Pass; T. 6 S., R. 43 E.; USGS Stonewall Pass 7.5 minute topographic quadrangle; 37 degrees 23 minutes 40 seconds N and longitude 117 degrees 9 minutes 19 seconds W; WGS84 Decimal Degrees 37.3944444 latitude, -117.1552778 longitude.

RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Soil moisture: Usually dry, moist in some part for short periods during the winter and early spring months and for 10 to 20 days cumulative between July and October due to convection storms; typic aridic soil moisture regime.
Mean annual soil temperature: 12 to 15 degrees C.
Depth to duripan: 41 to 50 cm.
Depth to base of Bt horizon: 28 to 46 cm.

Particle-size control section - Clay percent: 35 to 50 percent clay.
Rock fragments: 20 to 35 percent rock fragments.

A horizon
Value: 6 or 7 dry, 4 through 6 moist.
Chroma: 2 or 3.
Effervescence: Slightly effervescent to strongly effervescent.
Reaction: Moderately alkaline or strongly alkaline.

Bt horizon
Hue: 5YR or 7.5YR.
Value: 5 or 6 dry, 3 through 5 moist.
Chroma: 2 through 4.
Texture (less than 2 mm): Clay loam or clay.
Clay content: 35 to 50 percent.
Rock fragments: 20 to 30 percent, mainly gravel.
Effervescence: Slightly effervescent to strongly effervescent.
Reaction: Moderately alkaline or strongly alkaline.

Bk horizon (when present)
Hue: 5YR or 7.5YR.
Value: 5 or 6 dry, 3 through 5 moist.
Chroma: 2 through 4.
Rock fragments: 35 to 50 percent, mainly pan fragments.
Reaction: Moderately alkaline or strongly alkaline.

Bqkm horizon
Rupture resistance: Indurated in upper part. Lower part consists of weakly to strongly cemented layers alternating with strata of extremely gravelly loamy coarse sand.

COMPETING SERIES: These are the Deefan and Risue series.

Deefan and Risue soils lack significant summer precipitation.

GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Fuegosta soils are on erosional fan remnants of fan piedmonts. These soils formed in alluvium from mixed rock sources, mainly volcanic tuffs with minor amounts of quartzite and limestone. Slopes are 2 to 8 percent. Elevations are 1,394 to 1,895 meters. The climate is semiarid with cool moist winters. Summers are hot and dry with occasional convection storms. The mean annual precipitation is 125 to 200 mm, mean annual temperature is 11 to 14 degrees C, and the frost-free season is about 130 to 200 days.

GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Tomel and Vigus soils. Tomel soils are loamy-skeletal. Vigus soils lack a duripan.

DRAINAGE AND SATURATED HYDRAULIC CONDUCTIVITY: Well drained; medium runoff; moderately low saturated hydraulic conductivity.

USE AND VEGETATION: Livestock grazing and wildlife habitat. The present vegetation is mainly Bailey greasewood, shadscale, spiny horsebrush, spiny menodora, ephedra, Joshua-tree and galleta.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Southwestern Nevada. These soils are not extensive. MLRA 29.

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

SERIES ESTABLISHED: Esmeralda County, Nevada, 1984.

REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:
Ochric epipedon - The zone from the soil surface to 10 cm (A horizon).
Argillic horizon - The zone from 10 to 36 cm. (Bt horizon)
Duripan - The zone from 46 to 152 cm (Bqkm horizon)
Abruptic feature - An abrupt clay increase between the A and Bt horizon.
Particle-size control section - The zone from 10 to 46 cm (Bt horizons)

National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.