LOCATION PIERRE SD+MT NE WY

Established Series
Rev. DLB-MWS-JWW
02/2015

PIERRE SERIES

The Pierre series consists of moderately deep, well drained soils formed in clayey residuum, or local alluvium over residuum, derived from shale bedrock. Pierre soils are on gently sloping to rolling hillslopes on uplands on the Pierre Shale Plains (MLRA 60A). Saturated hydraulic conductivity is low. Slopes range from 0 to 30 percent. Mean annual precipitation is about 381 mm (15 inches), and mean annual air temperature is about 8 degrees C (46 degrees F).

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Fine, smectitic, mesic Torrertic Haplustepts

TYPICAL PEDON: Pierre clay, on a northeast-facing slope of 8 percent, in native grass. (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise stated)

A--0 to 13 cm (0 to 5 inches); dark grayish brown (2.5Y 4/2) clay, very dark grayish brown (2.5Y 3/2) moist; moderate fine granular structure; slightly hard, friable, moderately sticky and moderately plastic; common fine and very fine, few medium roots; neutral; clear smooth boundary. (5 to 18 cm thick)

Bw--13 to 49 cm (5 to 19 inches); grayish brown (2.5Y 5/2) clay, dark grayish brown (2.5Y 4/2) moist; weak medium and coarse prismatic structure parting to weak medium subangular blocky; very hard, firm, moderately sticky and moderately plastic; common very fine, few fine roots; few reversible trans-horizon cracks; slightly effervescent; neutral; clear wavy boundary. (10 to 50 cm thick)

Bk--49 to 66 cm (19 to 26 inches); olive gray (5Y 5/2) clay, olive gray (5Y 4/2) moist; weak medium and coarse subangular blocky structure; very hard, firm, very sticky and very plastic; about 10 percent weakly cemented, angular shale parachanners; few reversible trans-horizon cracks; common very fine, few fine roots; few fine accumulations of carbonate; strongly effervescent; slightly alkaline; gradual wavy boundary. (0 to 30 cm thick)

C--66 to 79 cm (26 to 31 inches); gray (5Y 6/1) parachannery clay, dark gray (5Y 4/1) moist; massive; very hard, extremely firm, moderately sticky and moderately plastic; about 20 percent weakly cemented, angular shale parachanners; few fine and very fine roots; strongly effervescent; slightly alkaline; clear smooth boundary. (10 to 25 cm thick)

Cr--79 to 200 cm (31 to 80 inches); gray (5Y 6/1) horizontally fractured, soft shale bedrock, dark gray (5Y 4/1) moist; common prominent brownish yellow (10YR 6/6) and dark yellowish brown (10YR 4/6) stains between fractures and bedrock plates; neutral.

TYPE LOCATION: Custer County, South Dakota; about 11.2 km (7 miles) east and 2 km (1.4 miles) south of Fairburn; about 427 m (1,400 feet) south and 610 m (2,000 feet) west of the northeast corner of sec. 32, T. 4 S., R. 9 E.; Fairburn NE quadrangle; 43 degrees, 39 minutes, 56.2 seconds north latitude, and 103 degrees, 4 minutes, 31.4 seconds west longitude; NAD 83.

RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Depth to bedrock: 50 to 100 cm (20 to 40 inches) to a paralithic contact
Depth to secondary calcium carbonate: typically typically less than 50 cm (20 inches); some pedons, especially in the northern part of the series domain, lack secondary accumulations and are very weakly or weakly effervescent
Linear extensibilty (LE): 6 to 11 cm

Particle-size control section (weighted average):
Clay content: 40 to 60 percent

A horizon:
Hue: 10YR, 2.5Y, 5Y
Value: 4 to 6 dry, 3 to 5 moist
Chroma: 1 to 3
Texture: silty clay, clay
Organic carbon content: 0.6 to 1.7 percent
Reaction: slightly acid to moderately alkaline

An AB or BA horizon occurs in some pedons.

Bw horizon:
Hue: 2.5Y, 5Y
Value: 5 or 6 dry, 4 or 5 moist
Chroma: 1 to 3
Texture: typically clay, less commonly silty clay
Reaction: neutral to moderately alkaline
Other features: reversible trans-horizon cracks 1 to 3 cm wide typically occur through this horizon when dry

Bk horizon:
Hue: 2.5Y, 5Y
Value: 5 or 6 dry, 4 or 5 moist
Chroma: 1 to 3
Texture: silty clay, clay, parachannery silty clay, parachannery clay
Pararock fragments: 0 to 30 percent weakly cemented, angular shale parachanners
Calcium carbonate content: 5 to 10 percent
Reaction: slightly alkaline or moderately alkaline
Other features: reversible trans-horizon cracks 1 to 2 cm wide commonly occur through part or all of this horizon when dry

C horizon:
Hue: 2.5Y, 5Y
Value: 5 or 6 dry, 4 or 5 moist
Chroma: 1 to 3
Texture: parachannery silty clay, parachannery clay, very parachannery silty clay, very parachannery clay, extremely parachannery silty clay, extremely parachannery clay
Pararock fragments: 25 to 80 percent weakly cemented, angular shale parachanners
Reaction: slightly alkaline or moderately alkaline

Cr horizon:
Hue: 2.5Y, 5Y
Value: 5 or 6 dry, 4 or 5 moist
Chroma: 1 to 3
Cementation class: very weakly to weakly cemented
Reaction: slightly acid to moderately alkaline
Other features: few to common auto-genetic masses and seams of gypsum and other soluble salts between fractures and within shale matrix; few to common relict mottles/stains of iron oxides are present between shale plates in many pedons

COMPETING SERIES: These are the Denby, Echeta, Gojiya, and Kanorado series.
Denby - are very deep
Echeta - are very deep
Gojiya - are very deep
Kanorado - are deep

GEOGRAPHIC SETTING:
Parent material: residuum or local alluvium over residuum from Cretaceous shale
Landform/Landscape: hillslopes on uplands
Slopes: 0 to 30 percent
Elevation: 610 to 1,465 meters (2,000 to 4,200 feet)
Mean annual air temperature: 7.8 to 11.7 degrees C (46 to 53 degrees F)
Mean annual precipitation: 305 to 406 mm (12 to 16 inches)
Precipitation pattern: over one-half the mean annual precipitation falls as snow and rain during the period April through July
Frost-free season: 125 to 150 days
Growing degree days: 2600 to 3100

GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS:
Hisle - have natric horizons; typically below Pierre soils in micro-lows
Kyle - are very deep and are very-fine; typically below Pierre soils on the landscape
Lismas - are shallow; typically above Pierre soils on the landscape
Samsil - are shallow; typically above Pierre soils on the landscape
Swanboy - are very deep and are very-fine; typically below Pierre soils on the landscape

DRAINAGE AND SATURATED HYDRAULIC CONDUCTIVITY: Well drained; low to very low saturated hydraulic conductivity; high to very high runoff, depending on slope.

USE AND VEGETATION: Used primarily as rangeland. Native grasses are mainly western wheatgrass, green needlegrass, sideoats grama, blue grama, buffalograss, and forbs. A few isolated areas are cropped, and a few areas are utilized for hayland and pasture.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Pierre shale plains in western South Dakota, northeastern Wyoming, and northwestern Nebraska; LRR G, MLRA 60A. Pierre is still correlated in a few non-MLRA subets of MLRA 63A in west-central South Dakota. The series is of large extent.

MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Denver, Colorado

SERIES ESTABLISHED: Belle Fourche area, South Dakota, 1907.

REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:
Ochric epipedon - 0 to 13 cm (0 to 5 inches); (A horizon)
Cambic horizon - 13 to 66 cm (5 to 26 inches); (Bw and Bk horizons)
Identifiable secondary carbonates - 49 to 66 cm (19 to 26 inches); (Bk and BCk horizons)
Paralithic contact - at 79 cm (31 inches); (upper boundary of Cr horizon)
Paralithic materials- 79 to 200 cm (31 to 80 inches); (Cr horizon)

The series taxonomic class is changed to Torrertic Haplustepts. Field observations of Pierre soils failed to reveal the presence of slickensides or wedge-shaped aggregates associated with Vertisols.

The typical pedon for the series is moved from Haakon County, South Dakota (MLRA 63A) to Custer County (MLRA 60A) with this update. MLRA 63A is typic-ustic.

Taxonomic Version: Keys to Soil Taxonomy, Twelvth Edition, 2013

ADDITIONAL DATA:
Twenty-three pedons are in the KSSL database. Many of these are grab samples. None are from the type location. Two complete samples are lab pedon id 87P0525 (field pedon id 87SD103001), and lab pedon id 40A2437 (field pedon id 57SD113009).

National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.