LOCATION PELICAN REEF            FL

Tentative Series
ARW
09/2026

PELICAN REEF SERIES

MLRA(s)--152A
Depth class--Very deep
Drainage class--Subaqueous
Water depth range--0 to 2 meters (0 to 6 feet)
Parent material--Sandy lagoonal deposits
Geomorphic location--Relict flood-tidal deltas
Slope range--0 to 1 percent
Mean annual air temperature--21 degrees C (70 degrees F)
Mean annual water temperature--24 degrees C (75 degrees F)

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Siliceous, hyperthermic Fluventic Psammowassents

TYPICAL PEDON: Pelican Reef sand on a relict flood-tidal delta under 0.7 meters of salt water. (colors are for moist soil unless otherwise stated; electrical conductivity is 1:5 by volume solution mixture unless otherwise stated).

Aseg--0 to 9 centimeters; black (N 2.5/) sand; single grain; nonsticky, nonplastic; nonfluid; strong sulfurous odor; many fine roots throughout; color change with 3 percent hydrogen peroxide; slight effervescence with 30 percent hydrogen peroxide; saline (3.5 dS/m); moderately alkaline (pH 8.0), slightly alkaline (pH 7.6) oxidized pH; clear boundary

Cseg1--9 to 48 centimeters; 95 percent dark grayish olive (10Y 4/2) and 5 percent black (N 2.5/) sand; single grain; nonsticky, nonplastic; nonfluid; common fine roots throughout; 8 percent shell fragments; slight sulfurous odor; no color change with 3 percent hydrogen peroxide; slight effervescence with 30 percent hydrogen peroxide; saline (3.2 dS/m); moderately alkaline (pH 8.3), strongly alkaline (pH 8.9) oxidized pH; clear boundary

Cseg2--48 to 153 centimeters; 92 percent light grayish olive (10Y 6/2) and 8 percent dark grayish olive (10Y 4/2) sand; single grain; nonsticky, nonplastic; nonfluid; 10 percent shell fragments at the top of the horizon; no sulfurous odor; no color change with 3 percent hydrogen peroxide; slight effervescence with 30 percent hydrogen peroxide; saline (3.6 dS/m); moderately alkaline (pH 8.4), very strongly alkaline (pH 9.4) oxidized pH; gradual boundary

Cseg3--153 to 200 centimeters; 95 percent light greenish gray (10Y 7/1) and 5 percent dark grayish olive (10Y 4/2) sand; single grain; nonsticky, nonplastic; nonfluid; 5 percent shell fragments; no sulfurous odor; no color change with 3 percent hydrogen peroxide; slight effervescence with 30 percent hydrogen peroxide; saline (3.5 dS/m); strongly alkaline (pH 8.5), very strongly alkaline (pH 9.3) oxidized pH

TYPE LOCATION: Franklin County, Florida; Saint George Sound; approximately 0.5 kilometers (0.3 miles) north of the southeast point of Goose Island, approximately 2.5 kilometers (1.6 miles) northeast by north of Shell Point, and approximately 1.6 kilometers (1.0 miles) west by northwest of Gap Point; USGS topographic quadrangle: Goose Island, FL

Latitude--29.703267
Longitude-- -84.794483
Datum--WGS84
Coordinate source--from hand-held GPS

RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Depth to bedrock--Greater than 200 centimeters
Manner of failure--Nonfluid throughout
Sulfurous odor--None to strong throughout
Soil reaction--Slightly alkaline to strongly alkaline throughout profile (pH 7.4 to 9.0)
Oxidized reaction--Neutral to very strongly alkaline throughout profile (pH 6.6 to > 9.0)
Electrical conductivity (1:5 soil to water solution)--2.5 to 4.0 dS m-1 throughout profile
Particle-size control section (weighted average):
Shell fragments--0 to 30 percent
Sand--85 to 97 percent
Clay--1 to 6 percent
Total soil organic carbon stock 0 to 100 centimeters--2 to 5 kg m-2
Total soil organic carbon stock 0 to 200 centimeters--5 to 9 kg m-2

Aseg horizons:
Hue--10Y or N
Value--2.5 or 3
Chroma--none or 1
Texture--Sand, fine sand, loamy sand, loamy fine sand and their shelly analogs
Organic carbon density--2 to 6 kg m-3

Cseg or Cg horizons:
Hue--2.5Y to 10Y
Value--3 to 7
Chroma--1 or 2
Texture--Coarse sand, sand, fine sand, loamy coarse sand, loamy sand, or loamy fine sand and their shelly analogs
Organic carbon density--1 to 4 kg m-3

COMPETING SERIES:
These are the Broadaxe, Eastpoint, Lutz, McKissack, Mullet, Sandbank, and Thalinectes series.
Broadaxe soils--Formed on submerged wave-cut platforms and contain buried spodic horizons.
Eastpoint soils--Formed on submerged wave-cut platforms, have slightly lower water salinity, and can have oxidized reactions below 7.4.
Lutz soils--Formed on flood-tidal deltas and have lower organic carbon densities in the surface.
McKissack soils--Formed in estuarine tidal streams from sandy estuarine deposits and commonly have 7.5YR hue and color values of 3 or 4.
Mullet soils--Formed on washover-fan flats, can have greater shell percentages and have lower organic carbon densities in the surface.
Sandbank soils--Formed on estuarine tidal stream deltas and have very fine mica flakes throughout the profile.
Thalinectes soils--Formed on washover-fans and longshore bars, allow for redder hue and can have oxidized reactions below 7.4

GEOGRAPHIC SETTING:
Landscape--Bays and Lagoons along the Gulf Coast
Landform--Relict (inactive) flood-tidal deltas
Parent material--Sandy lagoonal deposits
Slope--0 to 1 percent
Water depth range--0 to 2 meters (0 to 6 feet) below mean sea level
Water salinity range--25 to 35 parts per thousand
Water temperature range--18 to 30 degrees C (64 to 86 degrees F)
Soil temperature range--19 to 27 degrees C (66 to 81 degrees F)

GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS:
These are the Amtrac, Apalachicola, Dry Bar, Lutz, Sheepshead, and Thalinectes soils.
Amtrac soils--Are on high-energy lagoon bottoms and barrier coves and formed in coarse-loamy lagoon deposits.
Apalachicola soils--Are on bay and lagoon bottoms and formed in fine-loamy lagoonal deposits.
Dry Bar soils--Are on shoals and reefs and formed in sandy-skeletal lagoonal deposits.
Sheepshead soils--Are in barrier coves and do not have sandy textures throughout the particle size control section.

DRAINAGE AND SATURATED HYDRAULIC CONDUCTIVITY:
Drainage class--Subaqueous
Saturated hydraulic conductivity--High to very high
Soil moisture regime--Peraquic
Soil is continuously inundated by brackish water.

USE AND VEGETATION:
Major uses--These soils are used for recreational fishing and boating. These soils are occasionally dredged.
Typical vegetation--Often consists of shoal grass (Halodule wrightii) or turtle grass (Thalassia testudinum). Vegetative cover ranges from 30 to 80 percent.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT:
General area--Bays and Lagoons along the Gulf
Land Resource Region(s)--T - Atlantic and Gulf Coast Lowland Forest and Crop Region
MLRA(s)--152A
Extent--Small

SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (SSRO) RESPONSIBLE: Special Projects Office

SERIES ESTABLISHED: Franklin County, Florida, 2026

REMARKS:
Typical Pedon Taxonomic Features:
Ochric epipedon--0 to 9 centimeters
Reduced matrix--The zone from 0 to 200 centimeters has a soil color matrix with a chroma of 2 or less
Peraquic feature--Zero or positive soil water potential at the soil surface (permanently submerged)
Taxonomic Version: Keys to Soil Taxonomy, Thirteenth Edition, 2022
Other: Named after Pelican Reef in Apalachicola Bay near where the soil was first observed. Pelican Reef soils were previously mapped as water in Florida soil survey publications.

NASIS User Site and Pedon ID: S2025FL037028

---

National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.