LOCATION SHORTHAIR AZ+NM

Established Series
Rev. JVC/LWH/PDC/CDH/WWJ
10/2011

SHORTHAIR SERIES

The Shorthair series consists of well drained, sodic soils which are shallow to sandstone. Shorthair soils formed in alluvium and residuum derived from sandstone on footslopes and structural benches of valley sides. Slopes are 1 to 15 percent. Mean annual precipitation is about 7 inches and the mean annual air temperature is about 53 degrees F.

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Loamy, mixed, superactive, mesic Lithic Natrargids

TYPICAL PEDON: Shorthair gravelly loamy fine sand -- on a plane footslope sloping 2 percent to the northeast at 4,860 feet elevation -- rangeland. (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise noted. When described, the soil was moist from 2 to 9 inches and otherwise dry throughout.)

A--0 to 1 inch; light reddish brown (5YR 6/4) gravelly loamy fine sand, reddish brown (5YR 4/4) moist; moderate very thick platy structure parting to weak fine granular; soft, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; few very fine roots; very few fine vesicular pores; 15 percent gravel; strongly effervescent; moderately alkaline (pH 8.0); abrupt smooth boundary. (1 to 3 inches thick)

Btn/E--1 to 5 inches; reddish brown (5YR 5/4) with pinkish gray (5YR 6/2) fine sandy loam, reddish brown (5YR 4/4) with reddish gray (5YR 5/2) moist; moderate medium prismatic structure parting to weak very thick platy; hard, firm, slightly sticky and nonplastic; common fine and few very fine roots; common fine tubular pores; common faint clay films on ped faces and in pores; 10 percent gravel; strongly effervescent; very strongly alkaline (pH 9.2); clear smooth boundary. (3 or 4 inches thick)

2BCk--5 to 9 inches; light reddish brown (5YR 6/4) fine sandy loam, reddish brown (5YR 5/4) moist; weak medium subangular blocky structure; hard, friable, slightly sticky and nonplastic; few fine and common very fine roots; very few fine tubular pores; 25 percent soft sandstone fragments; strongly effervescent, secondary calcium carbonate segregated in few fine irregularly shaped accumulations on undersides of rock fragments; very strongly alkaline (pH 9.4); clear wavy boundary. (0 to 5 inches thick)

2C--9 to 16 inches; pink (5YR 7/3) loamy fine sand, reddish brown (5YR 5/3) moist; massive, platy rock structure; hard, friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; few fine and very fine roots; few fine irregularly shaped pores; 30 percent soft sandstone fragments; slightly effervescent; very strongly alkaline (pH 9.2); clear wavy boundary. (2 to 8 inches thick)

2R--16 inches; sandstone.

TYPE LOCATION: Apache County, Arizona; on the Navajo Indian Reservation about 4 miles north of Teec Nos Pos; 1,600 feet south and 350 feet west of the northeast corner of section 15, T.41 N., R.30 E; Latitude 36 degrees 57 minutes 46 seconds North and Longitude 109 degrees 6 minutes 12 seconds West.

RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:

Soil moisture - The soil moisture control section is intermittently moist in some part from July to October and December to March. It is assumed to be dry in all parts greater than 75 percent of the time (cumulative), when the soil temperature at the bedrock contact is 41 degrees F or higher. Driest during May and June. Typic aridic soil moisture regime.

Soil temperature - 54 to 59 degrees F.

Depth to bedrock - 10 to 20 inches

Clay content - 10 to 30 percent

Organic carbon content - 0.12 to 0.23 percent

A horizon
Hue: 5YR, 2.5YR
Value: 5 to 7 dry, 4 or 5 moist
Chroma: 3 or 4, dry or moist
Salinity: 0 to 2 mmhos/cm
Sodicity: 5 to 13 SAR
Rock fragments: 15 to 25 percent
15 to 20 percent gravel
0 to 5 percent cobble

Btn/E horizon
Hue: 5YR, 2.5YR
Value: 4 to 6 dry, 4 or 5 moist
Chroma: 2 to 6, dry or moist
Texture: fine sandy loam, sandy clay loam, sandy loam
Salinity: 2 to 4 mmhos/cm:
Sodicity: 13 to 30 SAR
Calcium carbonate equivalent: 5 to 10 percent
Rock fragments: 5 to 10 percent gravel

BC horizon
Hue: 5YR, 7.5YR
Value: 6 or 7 dry, 4 to 6 moist
Chroma: 2 to 4, dry or moist
Texture: fine sandy loam, loamy fine sand
Salinity: 4 to 8 mmhos/cm
Sodicity: 30 to 60 SAR
Calcium carbonate equivalent: 5 to 10 percent
Reaction: strongly to very strongly alkaline
Rock fragments: 0 to 10 percent gravel
Other features: 5 to 35 percent soft, slakable sandstone fragments

C horizon
Hue: 5YR through 5Y
Value: 5 to 8 dry, 4 to 6 moist
Chroma: 1 to 4, dry or moist
Texture: fine sandy loam, loamy fine sand, sandy loam, sandy clay loam
Salinity: 4 to 8 mmhos/cm
Sodicity: 30 to 80 SAR
Reaction: strongly to very strongly alkaline
Other features: 30 to 50 percent soft, slakable sandstone fragments

COMPETING SERIES: This is the Motto (UT) series. Motto soils have mean annual soil temperatures of 47 to 49 degrees F. and have 27 to 35 percent clay in the particle-size control section.

GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Shorthair soils are on footslopes and structural benches of valley sides. They formed in alluvium and residuum derived from Jurassic sandstone. Slopes range from 1 to 15 percent. Elevation ranges from 4,340 to 5,200 feet. The mean annual precipitation is 5 to 10 inches with 35 to 60 percent falling as rain from high-intensity thunderstorms between July and September. The mean annual air temperature is 52 to 57 degrees F. The frost-free period is 140 to 180 days.

GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Aneth, Recapture, Sogzie, and Whit soils. Aneth soils are very deep and occur on sand-mantled fan terraces. Recapture soils are very deep and occur on adjacent fan terraces. Sogzie and Whit soils are non-sodic and occur on old surfaces mantled with loamy eolian materials.

DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Well drained; rapid runoff; moderate permeability.

USE AND VEGETATION: Shorthair soils are used for livestock grazing. Present vegetation is alkali sacaton, galleta, mound saltbush, shadscale, Indian ricegrass, and Drummond goldenweed.

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Shorthair soils are of small extent on the Blanding Basin portion of the Colorado Plateau province in northeast Arizona and northwest New Mexico. MLRA 35.

MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Phoenix, Arizona

SERIES ESTABLISHED: Shiprock Area, Parts of San Juan County, New Mexico and Apache County, Arizona; 1993.

REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:

Ochric epipedon - The zone from 0 to 1 inch (A horizon)

Natric horizon - The zone from 1 to 5 inches (Btn/E horizon)

Lithic contact - The boundary at 16 inches (3R horizon)

Classified according to Soil Taxonomy Second Edition, 1999; Keys to Soil Taxonomy Eleventh Edition, 2010

Update and revisions for the correlation of Little Colorado River Area (AZ707), Sept. 2011, CEM

ADDITIONAL DATA: Salinity values were determined on three pedons, including the type location, with an Instant EC salinity kit. Calcium carbonate equivalent determined with a field volume calcimeter. The type location has been sampled for determination of particle-size and SAR as pedon S88NM-045-7 and analyzed at the BIA soils lab in Gallup, New Mexico.

National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.