LOCATION SADDLEBUNCH FL
Established Series
Rev. GWH-MFV-AMS
12/2025
SADDLEBUNCH SERIES
MLRA(s): 156A
Soil Survey Regional Office (SSRO) Responsible: Alburn, Alabama
Depth Class: Shallow
Drainage Class: Very Poorly drained
Saturated Hydraulic Conductivity: Moderately high to high in the marly material and negligible in the rock material
Index Surface Runoff: High
Parent Material: calcareous silty marl from marine water over oolitic limestone bedrock
Slope: 0 to 1 percent
Elevation: 0 to 5 meters above mean sea level
Mean Annual Air Temperature: 24 degrees C (75 degrees F)
Mean Annual Precipitation: 1345 centimeters (53 inches)
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Loamy, carbonatic, isohyperthermic, shallow Typic Fluvaquents
TYPICAL PEDON: Saddlebunch marly silt loam on a forested low rise.
Lma1--0 to 13 centimeters (0 to 5 inches); grayish brown (10YR 5/2) marly silt loam, light gray (10YR 7/2), dry; weak coarse platy structure parting to moderate fine granular; very friable, soft; slightly sticky, nonplastic; common fine and medium roots throughout; strong effervescent with 1N HCl; slightly alkaline (pH 7.8); clear smooth boundary. [5 to 20 centimeters (2 to 8 inches) thick]
Lma2--13 to 43 centimeters (5 to 17 inches); light gray (10YR 7/2) marly silt loam; weak coarse platy structure parting to weak fine granular; very friable, soft; slightly sticky, nonplastic; common fine and medium roots throughout; few fine and very fine pores; strong effervescent with 1N HCl; moderately alkaline (pH 8.2); abrupt irregular boundary. [5 to 46 centimeters (2 to 18 inches) thick]
2R--43 centimeters (17 inches); weakly to strongly cemented oolitic limestone bedrock; solution holes up to 102 centimeters (40 inches) or more deep can be filled with sandy and/or marly material.
TYPE LOCATION: Monroe County, Florida USGS Sugarloaf Key, FL quadrangle.
Latitude-- 24.636175
Longitude-- -81.5293583
Datum--WGS84
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Solum thickness: 25 to 50 centimeters (10 to 20 inches)
Depth to seasonally high water table: 0 to 15 centimeters (0 to 6 inches)
Soil Reaction: Slightly alkaline to moderately alkaline throughout (pH 7.4 to 8.4)
Depth of ochric epipedon: 5 to 20 centimeters (2 to 8 inches)
Depth to limestone bedrock: 25 to 50 centimeters (10 to 20 inches)
Rock fragments: 0 to 14 percent throughout
Calcium carbonate equivalence: 80 percent or more
EC (mmhos/cm): 8 to 32 or more
Sodium Absorption Ration: 30 to 50 percent or more
Exchangeable Sodium Percentage: 15 to 80 percent or more
Particle-size control section (weighted averages):
Clay content: 5 to 40 percent
Carbonate Clay percent: 4 to 35 percent
Silt content: 50 to 90 percent
Lma horizons:
Hue: 10YR or 2.5Y
Value: 3 to 8
Chroma: 1 to 3
Texture: marly silt loam, marly silty clay loam, or marly silt
2R horizon: weakly to strongly cemented coral or oolitic limestone bedrock.
COMPETING SERIES: These are the
Biscayne (FL) and
Cudjoe (FL) series.
Biscayne soils are from fresh water deposits, have greater than 15 percent rock fragments, are not flooded, and occur on similar landform positions on the southern Florida Peninsula.
Cudjoe soils occur in the tidal zone, are very frequently flooded, and occur on slightly lower landform positions.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING:
Landscape: Lower Coastal Plain
Landform(s): marine marshes, swamps, and low broad flats on the Islands of Key West
Parent material: calcareous silty marl sediments from marine water over oolitic limestone bedrock
Mean annual temperature: 23 to 27 degrees C (73 to 81 degrees F)
Mean annual precipitation: 940 to 1570 millimeters (37 to 62 inches)
Frost-free period: 365 days
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS:
Cudjoe and
Lignumvitae soils occur in the tidal zone with mangroves and are subject to very frequent flooding.
Islamorada,
Keylargo, and
Tavernier soils have sapric organic control sections, occur in the tidal zone with mangroves, are very frequently flooded, and occur on lower landform positions.
Keyvaca soils have greater than 35 percent rock fragments, have bedrock at depths less than 15 centimeters (6 inches), are better drained, and occur on higher landform positions.
Keywest soils are stratified with sapric organic material and calcareous silty marl sediments, occur in the tidal zone with mangroves, are very frequently flooded, and occur on lower landform positions.
Matecumbe soils have sapric organic muck over bedrock, have bedrock at depths of less than 23 centimeters (9 inches), and occur on higher landform positions.
Pennekamp soils have less than 45 percent silt fraction, have sapric organic surfaces, are better drained, and occur on higher landform positions.
DRAINAGE AND SATURATED HYDRAULIC CONDUCTIVITY:
Drainage class: Very Poorly drained
Saturated hydraulic conductivity (KSAT): Moderately high to high
Runoff: High
Depth to seasonal high-water table: 15 to 46 centimeters (6 to 18 inches)
Flooding frequency and duration: rare to frequent flooding with brief duration caused by storm surges and hurricanes
USE AND VEGETATION:
Major uses: wildlife habitat, recreational and urban development.
Dominant vegetation: wild tamarind, mahogany, poisonwood, wild coffee, crabwood, buttonwood, white mangrove, and thatch palm.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: MLRA 156A Florida Everglades and Associated Areas.
Extent: limited
SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (SSRO) RESPONSIBLE: Auburn, Alabama
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Monroe County, Florida, 1989.
REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this Pedon:
1. Particle-size control section: 50 centimeters (20 inches)or less
2. Limnic soil material 0 to 43 centimeters (0 to 17 inches) (Lma1, Lma2 horizons)
3. Lithic contact 43 centimeters (17 inches) (2R horizon)
4. Aquic conditions: Endosaturation - 0 to 43 centimeters (0 to 17 inches)
5. Hydric Indicators: F10 Marl
6. Calcium Carbonate Equivalence: 80 percent or more
OSD User Site ID: 2019FL687001
OSD User Pedon ID: 2019FL687001
National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.