LOCATION MISAD                   NV

Established Series
Rev. CEJ/RLB/JBF
03/2016

MISAD SERIES

The Misad series consists of very deep, well drained soils that formed in alluvium or lake sediments derived from mixed rocks with some influence from loess high in volcanic ash. Misad soils occur on alluvial fans, fan skirts, inset fans and offshore bars. Slopes are 0 to 15 percent. The mean annual precipitation is about 180 mm and the mean annual temperature is about 9 degrees C.

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Loamy-skeletal, mixed, superactive, calcareous, mesic Duric Torriorthents

TYPICAL PEDON: Misad gravelly sandy loam--rangeland. (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise noted.)

A1--0 to 8 cm; pale brown (10YR 6/3) gravelly sandy loam, dark brown (10YR 3/3) moist; moderate thin and medium platy structure; slightly hard, very friable, nonsticky and slightly plastic; few very fine roots; many very fine vesicular and tubular pores; 20 percent gravel; slightly effervescent; strongly alkaline (pH 8.6); abrupt smooth boundary. (5 to 13 cm thick)

A2--8 to 18 cm; pale brown (10YR 6/3) gravelly sandy loam, brown (10YR 4/3) moist; moderate thin platy structure; slightly hard, very friable, nonsticky and slightly plastic; common very fine and common fine roots; many very fine vesicular and tubular pores; 30 percent gravel; slightly effervescent; strongly alkaline (pH 9.0); clear wavy boundary. (10 to 20 cm thick)

Bq--18 to 36 cm; pale brown (10YR 6/3) fine sandy loam, brown (10YR 4/3) moist; common fine distinct relict iron mottles; brown (7.5YR 5/4) and brown (7.5YR 4/4) moist; massive; slightly hard, very friable, nonsticky and slightly plastic; common very fine and few fine and medium roots; many very fine tubular pores; 10 percent gravel; 15 percent 5 to 15 mm weakly cemented durinodes; strongly effervescent; strongly alkaline (pH 9.0); clear smooth boundary. (0 to 38 cm thick)

2Bkq1--36 to 66 cm; pale brown (10YR 6/3) gravelly fine sandy loam, brown (10YR 4/3) moist; common fine distinct relict iron mottles, brown (7.5YR 5/4) and brown (7.5YR 4/2) moist; massive; slightly hard, very friable, nonsticky and slightly plastic; very few very fine and fine roots; common very fine tubular pores; 25 percent gravel; 35 percent 5 to 30 millimeter weak and strongly cemented durinodes; violently effervescent; strongly alkaline (pH 8.8); clear smooth boundary. (18 to 60 cm thick)

2Bkq2--66 to 79 cm; pale brown (10YR 6/3) very gravelly fine sandy loam, dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/4) moist; few fine distinct relict iron concentrations, brown (7.5YR 5/4) and brown (7.5YR 4/2) moist; massive; slightly hard, very friable, nonsticky and slightly plastic; very few very fine roots; many very fine tubular pores; 45 percent gravel; 10 percent 5 to 15 mm weakly cemented durinodes; violently effervescent; strongly alkaline (pH 9.0); clear wavy boundary. (10 to 56 cm thick)

3C--79 to 109 cm; pale brown (10YR 6/3) very gravelly loamy coarse sand brown (10YR 4/3) moist; massive; soft, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; very few very fine roots; many very fine interstitial and tubular pores; 55 percent gravel; strongly alkaline (pH 9.0); clear wavy boundary. (0 to 40 cm thick)

4Cq--109 to 152 cm; variegated colors, extremely gravelly coarse sand, single grained; loose, nonsticky and nonplastic; very few fine roots; 75 percent gravel; few horizontal 5 to 8 cm thick discontinuous strong silica cemented lenses; moderately alkaline (pH 8.4).

TYPE LOCATION: Lander County, Nevada; approximately 2.6 miles southeast of Battle Mountain; about 2,500 feet east and 1,000 feet south of the approximate northwest corner of section 27, T. 32 N., R. 45 E.; latitude 40 degrees 37 minutes 20 seconds N and longitude 116 degrees 53 minutes 30 seconds W; WGS84 Decimal Degrees 40.6222222 latitude, -116.8916667 longitude.

RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Soil moisture: Usually dry, moist in winter and early spring, dry summer and fall; typic aridic soil moisture regime.
Mean annual soil temperature: 8 to 11 degrees C.
Depth to Bkq horizon with more than 20 percent durinodes: 20 to 64 cm.
Depth to unconformable 2C horizon: 50 to 90 cm.
Reaction: Normally calcareous, but is commonly noneffervescent in the surface or some strata in the lower profile.
Relict iron redox concentrations: Common in any horizon below 18 cm.

Particle-size control section - Clay content: Averages 12 to 18 percent.
Rock fragments: 35 to 50 percent, mainly gravel.

A horizon
Hue: 2.5Y or l0YR.
Value: 6 or 7 dry, 3 through 5 moist.
Chroma: 2 or 3.

Bq & 2Bkq horizon
Hue: 10YR or 7.5YR.
Value: 5 or 6 dry, 4 or 5 moist.
Chroma: 2 through 4.
Texture: Stratified sandy loam, fine sandy loam, very fine sandy loam, loamy coarse sand and loamy sand.
Durinodes: 10 to 40 percent, weak through strongly cemented.

3C & 4Cq horizons
Texture: Stratified loamy sand, sand, loamy coarse sand.
Rock fragments: 50 to 70 percent, mainly gravel.
Cementation: Commonly has discontinuous, weak or strongly silica cemented lenses between gravel in any layer.
Carbonates: Noneffervescent through strongly effervescent.

COMPETING SERIES: There are no other series in this family.

GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Misad soils are on alluvial fans, fan skirts, inset fans and offshore bars. These soils formed in alluvium or lake sediments derived from mixed rock sources with some influence from loess high in volcanic ash. Elevations are 1,220 to 1,830 meters. Slopes are 0 to 15 percent. The climate is cool, semiarid with hot, dry summers and cool, moist winters. The mean annual precipitation is 130 to 200 mm; mean annual temperature is 8 to 10 degrees C, and the frost-free season is 100 to 120 days.

GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Beoska and Whirlo soils. Beoska soils have fine-loamy natric horizons. Whirlo soils lack durinodes in a friable matrix within 100 cm.

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

USE AND VEGETATION: Livestock grazing and wildlife habitat. The vegetation is mainly shadscale, bud sagebrush, black greasewood and bottlebrush squirreltail.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: North-central Nevada. These soils are of small extent, MLRA 24.

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

SERIES ESTABLISHED: Lander County, Nevada, South Part, 1985.

REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:
Ochric epipedon - The zone from the surface to 18 cm (A1 and A2 horizons)
Duric feature - The zone from 36 to 66 cm (2Bkq1 horizon).
Particle-size control section - The zone from 25 to 100 cm (2Bkq1, 2Bkq2 and parts of the Bq and 3C horizons).

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National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.