LOCATION MAUCRAK OR
Tentative Series
IRD. JRD/DAL
02/2025
MAUCRAK SERIES
Landscape--mountains, plateaus, foothills
Landform--mountain slopes, ridges, low hills, landslides
Slope--0 to 20 percent
Parent material--residuum and colluvium derived from basalt, andesite, or rhyolite
Mean annual precipitation--about 410 mm
Mean annual air temperature--about 6 degrees C
Depth class--very deep
Drainage class--well drained
Soil moisture regime--xeric
Soil temperature regime--frigid
Soil moisture subclass--typic
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Fine, smectitic, frigid Typic Haploxererts
TYPICAL PEDON: Maucrak clay loam - shrub steppe rangeland, on a 4 percent slightly convex southwest-facing slope at an elevation of 1,500 meters. (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise noted.)
A--0 to 10 centimeters; dark brown (10YR 3/3) clay loam, very dark brown (10YR 2/2) moist; moderate thin and medium platy structure; slightly hard, friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; many very fine and fine roots; many very fine and fine vesicular pores; 5 percent gravel; moderately acid (pH 6.0); abrupt smooth boundary. (8 to 15 centimeters thick)
Bt1--10 to 23 centimeters; dark brown (10YR 3/3) clay, very dark brown (10YR 2/2) moist; weak very thick platy parting to moderate medium angular blocky structure; slightly hard, friable, moderately sticky and moderately plastic; many very fine and fine roots throughout and few medium and coarse roots throughout; many very fine and fine dendritic tubular pores; common, faint, brown, common faint clay films between sand grains; 5 percent gravel; moderately acid (pH 6.0); clear smooth boundary. (10 to 15 centimeters thick)
Bt2--23 to 38 centimeters; dark brown (10YR 3/3) clay, very dark brown (10YR 2/2) moist; moderate medium subangular blocky parting to moderate fine angular blocky structure; slightly hard, friable, moderately sticky and moderately plastic; many very fine and fine roots throughout and few medium and coarse roots throughout; many fine and medium dendritic tubular pores; many, faint, brown, many faint clay films between sand grains and common faint clay films on surfaces lining pores; 5 percent gravel; slightly acid (pH 6.2); abrupt smooth boundary. (13 to 20 centimeters thick)
Btss--38 to 71 centimeters; strong brown (7.5YR 4/6) clay, brown (7.5YR 4/4) moist; strong fine and medium prismatic structure; very hard, very firm, moderately sticky and moderately plastic; common very fine and medium roots throughout; few fine and medium dendritic tubular pores; common prominent clay films on ped faces; slickensides on vertical ped faces; 5 percent gravel; moderately acid (pH 6.0); abrupt smooth boundary. (25 to 38 centimeters thick)
Btkss--71 to 135 centimeters; strong brown (7.5YR 4/6) clay, brown (7.5YR 4/4) moist; strong medium prismatic structure; very hard, very firm, moderately sticky and moderately plastic; few fine and medium roots throughout; few fine and medium dendritic tubular pores; common prominent clay films on ped faces; slickensides on vertical ped faces; many thick prominent carbonate coatings on ped faces (coatings are violently effervescent); 5 percent gravel; neutral (pH 6.8); abrupt smooth boundary. (50 to 76 centimeters thick)
2Bk--135 to 152 centimeters; dark yellowish brown (10YR4/6) cobbly sandy clay, dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) moist; massive structure; hard, firm, moderately sticky and moderately plastic; no roots; few fine vesicular pores; many thick prominent carbonate coatings on bottoms of rock fragments; 5 percent gravels, 15 percent cobbles; effervescent; neutral (pH 6.6).
TYPE LOCATION: Crook County, Oregon; eastern Maury Mountains; off the 1600-450 road; SW1/4, NE1/4, SW1/4 of Section 11, T. 18 S., R. 20 E; Latitude 44.0214791, Longitude -120.2945567, WGS84 Datum (coordinates determined from GPS)
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Mean annual soil temperature--5 to 8 degrees C
Soil Moisture--usually moist, but dry 75 to 120 consecutive days following summer solstice Thickness of mollic epipedon--18 to 50 cm
Thickness of argillic horizon--75 to 125 cm
Reaction--moderately acid to neutral throughout
Cracks--reversible trans-horizon cracks, 1 to 3 cm wide extending from surface to 150 cm maximum
Depth to secondary carbonates--56 to 100 cm
Particle-size control section
*Clay content (weighted average): 40 to 60 percent
*Rock fragment content (weighted average): 0 to 14 percent
A horizon
*Hue--10YR
*Value--2 or 3 moist or dry
*Chroma--2 or 3 moist or dry
*Fine earth texture--clay loam, silty clay loam, sandy clay loam
*Clay--20 to 40 percent
*Sand--10 to 60 percent
*Organic matter--2 to 4 percent
*Total fragments--0 to 10 percent
*Gravel--0 to 5 percent
*Cobbles--0 to 5 percent
*Stones--0 to 5 percent
Bt horizons
*Hue--10YR
*Value--2 or 3 moist or dry
*Chroma--2 or 3 moist or dry
*Fine earth texture--clay, silty clay
*Clay--40 to 60 percent
*Sand--10 to 45 percent
*Organic matter--1 to 3 percent
*Total fragments--0 to 10 percent
*Gravel--0 to 5 percent
*Cobbles--0 to 5 percent
*Stones--0 to 5 percent
Btss horizons
*Hue--7.5YR
*Value--3 or 4 moist, 4 or 5 dry
*Chroma--4 to 6 moist or dry
*Fine earth texture--clay, silty clay
*Clay--40 to 60 percent
*Sand--10 to 45 percent
*Organic matter--0.5 to 2.0 percent
*Total fragments--0 to 10 percent
*Gravel--0 to 5 percent
*Cobbles--0 to 5 percent
*Stones--0 to 5 percent
2Bk horizon
*Hue--7.5YR or 10YR
*Value--3 or 4 moist, 4 dry
*Chroma--4 to 6 moist or dry
*Fine earth texture--clay, silty clay, sandy clay
*Clay--35 to 60 percent
*Sand--10 to 60 percent
*Organic matter--0.5 to 2.0 percent
*Total fragments--0 to 35 percent
*Gravel--0 to 15 percent
*Cobbles--0 to 20 percent
*Stones--0 to 5 percent
COMPETING SERIES:
Bagval--mollic epipedon averages greater than 75 cm thick
Broncrak--has organic surface horizon; mollic epipedon is 25 to 50 cm thick; lower horizons average less than 27 percent clay
Frenchollow--mollic epipedon 35 to 50 cm thick, lacks argillic horizon, lacks secondary carbonates
Hawkins--mollic epipedon is 25 to greater than 75 centimeters thick; lacks argillic horizon
Obnot--mollic epipedon is 30 to 60 cm thick, lacks argillic horizon, contains iron-manganese concretions
Obray--mollic epipedon is 79 to 115 cm thick; lacks argillic horizon
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING:
Elevation--1500 to 1800 meters
Climate--cool, moist winters and warm, dry summers
Mean annual precipitation--410 to 510 mm
Mean annual air temperature--4 to 7 degrees C
Frost-free period--50 to 90 days
Lithology--Picture Gorge basalt, John Day-Clarno tuff
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS:
Hankins--occur on mountain slopes, ridges and flats; surface horizons contain volcanic ash
Merlin--occur on benches and hillslopes; 25 to 50 cm to lithic contact
Wayranch--occur on hillslopes and foothills; 50 to 100 cm to paralithic contact
DRAINAGE AND SATURATED HYDRAULIC CONDUCTIVITY:
Drainage class--well
Saturation during normal years--none
Flooding--none
Ponding--none
Saturated hydraulic conductivity (Ksat)--moderately low to low
USE AND VEGETATION:
Use--rangeland, livestock grazing, wildlife habitat
Natural vegetation--mountain big sagebrush, low sagebrush, Idaho fescue, bluebunch wheatgrass, scattered mature western juniper.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT:
Central Oregon, Ochoco Mountains, MLRA 43C, small extent.
SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (SSRO) RESPONSIBLE: Bozeman, Montana
SERIES PROPOSED: Maury Mountains, Ochoco National Forest, Crook County, Oregon, 1997
REMARKS:
Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:
*Mollic epipedon--0 to 38 centimeters (A, Bt1 and Bt2 horizons)
*Argillic horizon--10 to 135 centimeters (Bt1, Bt2, Btss and Btssk)
*Vertic feature-- coefficient of linear extensibility (COLE) for upper 40 inches is 8.2.
*Cracks--from 1 to 3 cm wide extending from surface to 153 centimeters.
Some pedons do not have free carbonates and slickensides in lower subsoil.
Plant Association: SD2911; mountain big sage, Idaho fescue, bluebunch wheatgrass. (Hall, Fred; 1973; Plant Communities of the Blue Mountains in Eastern Oregon and Southeastern Washington; PNW Region; R6, Area Guide 3-1)
National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.