LOCATION MOBEETIE TX+NM OK

Established Series
Rev. RM-TCB
09/2022

MOBEETIE SERIES

The Mobeetie series consists of very deep, well drained, moderately rapidly permeable soils that formed in calcareous, sandy alluvium and colluvium derived from the Ogallala Formation of Mio-Pliocene age. These soils are on nearly level to gently sloping valley flats or gently sloping to steep valley side or scarp. Slope ranges from 0 to 45 percent. Mean annual precipitation is about 496 mm (20 in) and mean annual temperature is about 16 degrees C (61 degrees F).

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Coarse-loamy, mixed, superactive, thermic Aridic Haplustepts

TYPICAL PEDON: Mobeetie fine sandy loam, on a 4 percent slope in rangeland at an elevation of about 893 m (2,930 ft.). (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise stated.)

A--0 to 25 cm (0 to 10 in); grayish brown (10YR 5/2) fine sandy loam, dark grayish brown (10YR 4/2) moist; moderate fine granular structure; slightly hard, very friable; slightly sticky; common very fine and fine pores; few calcium carbonate nodules; few siliceous gravel; few 1 cm in diameter pararock fragments of moderately cemented calcium carbonate; strongly effervescent; moderately alkaline; gradual smooth boundary. (15 to 46 cm thick)

Bw--25 to 66 cm (10 to 26 in); light brown (7.5YR 6/4) fine sandy loam, brown (7.5YR 4/4) moist; weak coarse prismatic structure parting to weak medium subangular blocky and granular; slightly hard, very friable; many very fine to medium pores; less than 2 percent by volume of calcium carbonate as films, filaments, and nodules; few siliceous gravels; few 1 cm in diameter pararock fragments of moderately cemented calcium carbonate; violently effervescent; moderately alkaline; diffuse wavy boundary. (10 to 66 cm thick)

Bk--66 to 107 cm (26 to 42 in); pink (7.5YR 7/4) fine sandy loam, light brown (7.5YR 6/4) moist; weak coarse prismatic structure parting to weak medium subangular blocky and granular; slightly hard, friable; many very fine to medium pores; about 4 percent by volume of calcium carbonate as films, filaments, and nodules; few siliceous gravel; few 1 cm in diameter pararock fragments of moderately cemented calcium carbonate; violently effervescent; moderately alkaline; diffuse boundary. (20 to 150 cm thick)

BCk--107 to 203 cm (42 to 80 in); pink (7.5YR 7/4) fine sandy loam, light brown (7.5YR 6/4) moist; massive; slightly hard, friable; many fine to medium pores; about 3 percent by volume of calcium carbonate as films, filaments, and nodules; few siliceous gravel; violently effervescent; moderately alkaline.

TYPE LOCATION: Lubbock County, Texas; 10.8 kilometers (6.7 miles) south of Acuff, Texas, on the Slaton Road in a pasture, 30 m (100 ft) east of road. Location is 241 m (791 ft) southeast of entrance to Wallace Ranch headquarters. Acuff, Texas USGS quad; Latitude: 33 degrees, 30 minutes, 15 seconds N.; Longitude: 101 degrees, 37 minutes, 30 seconds W.; NAD 1965.

RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Soil moisture: An ustic moisture regime bordering on aridic. The soil moisture control section is dry in some or all parts for more than 180 but less than 205 days, cumulative, in normal years. July through August and December through February are the driest months. These soils are intermittently moist in September through November and March through June.
Mean annual soil temperature: 16 to 18 degrees C (59 to 64 degrees F).
Depth to secondary carbonates: 15 to 46 cm (6 to 18 in).
Depth to calcic horizon: greater than 100 cm (40 in). Solum thickness: more than 203 cm (80 in).
Particle-size control section: 10 to 17 percent silicate clay.

A horizon:
Hue: 7.5YR or 10YR
Value: 4 to 6, 3 to 5 moist (moist color value and/or chroma is less than 3.5 when the A horizon is more than 20 cm (8 in) thick)
Chroma: 2 to 4
Texture: fine sandy loam
Coarse fragments: 0 to 15 percent siliceous gravel
Pararock fragments: 0 to 5 percent caliche fragments
Effervescence: slight to violent
Reaction: slightly alkaline to moderately alkaline

Bw horizon:
Hue: 5YR to 10YR
Value: 5 or 6, 4 or 5 moist
Chroma: 2 to 6
Texture: fine sandy loam or loam
Coarse fragments: 0 to 4 percent siliceous gravel
Pararock fragments: 0 to 5 percent caliche fragments
Visible calcium carbonate: few films, filaments, and nodules
Effervescence: strong or violent
Reaction: slightly alkaline to moderately alkaline

Bk horizons:
Hue: 5YR to 10YR
Value: 6 to 7, 5 to 6 moist
Chroma: 2 to 6
Texture: fine sandy loam or loam
Coarse fragments: 0 to 4 percent siliceous gravel
Pararock fragments: 0 to 5 percent caliche fragments
Visible calcium carbonate: 2 to 4 percent by volume as films, filaments, nodules, and finely disseminated carbonates
Calcium carbonate equivalent: less than 5 percent by weight
Effervescence: strong or violent
Reaction: moderately alkaline

Upper BCk horizon:
Hue: 5YR to 10YR
Value: 6 to 7, 5 to 6 moist
Chroma: 2 to 6
Texture: fine sandy loam or sandy loam
Coarse fragments: 0 to 8 percent siliceous gravel
Pararock fragments: 0 to 5 percent caliche pebbles and cobbles
Visible calcium carbonate: 3 to 6 percent by volume as films, filaments, and finely disseminated carbonates
Calcium carbonate equivalent: less than 5 percent by weight
Effervescence: strong or violent
Reaction: moderately alkaline or strongly alkaline

Lower BCk horizon (where present):
Hue: 5YR or 7.5YR
Value: 6 to 8, 5 to 7 moist
Chroma: 2 to 4
Texture: fine sandy loam or loam
Coarse fragments: 0 to 8 percent siliceous gravel
Pararock fragments: 0 to 5 percent caliche pebbles and cobbles
Visible secondary calcium carbonate: 5 to 30 percent by volume as filaments, masses, nodules, and finely disseminated carbonates
Calcium carbonate equivalent: 5 to 20 percent by weight
Effervescence: violent
Reaction: moderately alkaline or strongly alkaline

COMPETING SERIES: This is the Spade and Vortex series. Similar soils include the Berda, Guadalupe, Likes, and Veal series.
Spade series: have lithic contact between 50 and 100 cm (20 and 40 in).
Vortex series: have less than 2 percent visible secondary calcium carbonate
Berda series: have 18 to 35 percent silicate clay in the particle-size control section.
Guadalupe series: have an irregular decrease in organic carbon between 25 and 125 cm (10 to 50 in).
Likes series: do not have a cambic horizon.
Veal series: have carbonatic mineralogy.

GEOGRAPHIC SETTING:
Parent material: calcareous, sandy alluvium and colluvium derived mainly from the Ogallala Formation of Mio-Pliocene age.
Landform: valley flat, valley side, or scarp.
Slope: dominantly 1 to 20 percent but ranges from 0 to 45 percent.
Mean annual air temperature: 15 to 17 degrees C (57 to 63 degrees F).
Mean annual precipitation: 432 to 559 mm (17 to 23 in).
Precipitation pattern: Precipitation is mostly even throughout the year with the exception of November through March being the driest months and April through October being the wettest months.
Frost-free period: 185 to 220 days.
Elevation: 670 to 1,615 m (2,200 to 5,300 ft).
Thornthwaite annual P-E Index: 25 to 36.

GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These include the similar Berda, Guadalupe, Likes, and Veal soils and the Ady, Alibates, Bippus, Manson, Plemons, Potter, Sprone, and Tascosa soils.
Berda, Veal, and Likes soils: are on similar landscape positions.
Bippus and Sprone soils: are on lower landscape positions and have 18 to 35 percent silicate clay in the particle-size control section.
Guadalupe soils: are on lower landscape positions.
Ady, Alibates, Manson, and Plemons soils: are on slightly higher landscape positions and have an argillic horizon.
Potter and Tascosa soils: are on slightly higher landscape positions and have a loamy-skeletal particle-size class.

DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Well drained and moderately rapid permeability. Runoff is negligible on less than 1 percent slopes, very low on 1 to 5 percent slopes, and low on 5 to 10 percent slopes.

USE AND VEGETATION: These soils are primarily used for livestock grazing. Vegetation is dominantly little bluestem, sideoats grama, sand bluestem, and blue grama. Sand sagebrush is the major woody species along with small amounts of yucca and skunkbush. This soil has been correlated to the Mixedland Slopes (R077EY061TX) ecological site in MLRA-77E.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Southern High Plains, Breaks (MLRA 77E in LRR H) of western Texas, eastern New Mexico, and northwestern Oklahoma. The series is of moderate extent.

MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Temple, Texas

SERIES ESTABLISHED: Gray County, Texas; 1965.

REMARKS: The Mobeetie series is a Benchmark soil.
The Mobeetie series was formerly included in the Berthoud series.
Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:
Ochric epipedon: 0 to 25 cm (0 to 10 in) (A horizon)
Cambic horizon: 25 to 107 cm (10 to 42 in) (Bw & Bk horizon)
Buried darkened layers are present in some pedons below 60 cm (24 in) of the soil surface; in addition, some pedons have loamy sand strata below 150 cm (60 in).

ADDITIONAL DATA: Lubbock SS Lab - S2022TX045025 (Briscoe County, Texas); KSSL data from Beaver County, OK (S98OK-007-002).

Taxonomic Version: Keys to Soil Taxonomy, Twelfth Edition, 2014.

National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.