LOCATION SPONIKER AZEstablished Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Fine, smectitic, mesic Pachic Argiustolls
TYPICAL PEDON: Sponiker gravelly loam - woodland. (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise noted.)
0i--0 to 1 inch; pine needles. (0 to 2 inches thick)
A--1 to 5 inches; brown (7.5YR 4/2) gravelly loam, dark brown (7.5YR 3/2) moist; moderate fine granular structure; slightly hard, very friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; few fine roots; many very fine tubular pores; 25 percent gravel; slightly alkaline (pH 7.4); clear wavy boundary. (2 to 5 inches thick)
Bt1--5 to 13 inches; brown (7.5YR 4/2) clay loam, dark brown (7.5YR 3/2) moist; moderate very fine subangular blocky structure; hard, firm, sticky and plastic; many medium roots; common very fine tubular pores; few faint clay films on faces of peds and in pores; 5 percent gravel and 5 percent cobble; slightly alkaline (pH 7.4); clear wavy boundary. (6 to 12 inches thick)
Bt2--13 to 23 inches; brown (7.5YR 4/3) cobbly clay loam, dark brown (7.5YR 3/2) moist; strong fine angular blocky structure; hard, firm, sticky and plastic; many medium roots; common very fine tubular pores; few faint clay films on faces of peds and in pores; 20 percent cobble and 10 percent gravel; slightly alkaline (pH 7.6); clear wavy boundary. (6 to 16 inches thick)
Bt3--23 to 31 inches; brown (7.5YR 5/3) clay, dark brown (7.5YR 3/3) moist; strong medium angular blocky structure; hard, firm, very sticky and very plastic; common medium roots; common very fine tubular pores; many distinct clay films on faces of peds and in pores; 1 percent gravel; slightly alkaline (pH 7.8); clear wavy boundary. (6 to 20 inches thick)
Bt4--31 to 61 inches; reddish brown (5YR 5/4) clay, reddish brown (5YR 4/4) moist; strong medium angular blocky structure; very hard, very firm, very sticky and very plastic; few fine roots; common very fine tubular pores; many distinct clay films on faces of peds and in pores; 1 percent gravel; slightly alkaline (pH 7.8).
TYPE LOCATION: Mohave County, Arizona; about 2 miles south of Mount Trumbull; 2,100 feet east, 200 feet south of the northwest corner of sec. 4, T. 34 N., R. 8 W.; Latitude 36 degrees, 22 minutes, 56 seconds N., Longitude 113 degrees, 9 minutes, 28 seconds W.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Soil moisture: Intermittently moist in some part of the soil moisture control section during July - September and December - March. Driest during May and June. Typic ustic soil moisture regime.
Soil temperature: 47 to 59 degrees F.
Organic matter: 1 to 4 percent throughout
Reaction: neutral or slightly alkaline
Rock fragments: averages less than 35 percent in the particle-size control section
A horizon
Hue: 5YR, 7.5YR
Value: 3 to 5 dry, 2, 2.5 or 3 moist
Chroma: 2 or 3, dry or moist
Reaction: neutral or slightly alkaline
Bt horizon
Hue: 5YR, 7.5YR
Value: 3 to 6 dry, 2, 2.5 to 6 moist
Chroma: 2 to 4, dry or moist
Texture: clay loam, loam, silty clay loam, silty clay or clay (average 35 to 60 percent clay and contains less than 40 percent sand)
Reaction: slightly or moderately alkaline
Other features: some pedons have intersecting slickensides below 40 inches
COMPETING SERIES: These are the Crete (NE), Detroit (KS), Lane (SD), Lockhard (I)(KS), Onita (SD), Pinespring (AZ), Rago (CO), and Smolan (KS) series. Pinespring soils have sandy clay loam, sandy clay and clay loam textures and average more than 40 percent sand in control section. The other soils are moist in the moisture control section during May and June. Lockhard soils are inactive.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Sponiker soils are on fan terraces. These soils formed in alluvium derived from sedimentary rocks, basalt and other pyroclastics. Slopes are 1 to 40 percent. Elevation ranges from 5,800 to 8,000 feet. Mean annual precipitation is 17 to 25 inches. Mean annual air temperature is 45 to 57 degrees F. Frost-free period is 120 to 180 days.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Jonale, Godding, Lomaki, Monzano, and Wukoki soils. Jonale and Monzano soils are fine-loamy. Godding soils have a frigid soil temperature regime. Lomaki and Wukoki soils are ashy-skeletal over fragmental or cindery.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Well drained; medium runoff; slow or very slow permeability.
USE AND VEGETATION: Used mainly for livestock grazing and wildlife habitat. The present vegetation is ponderosa pine, gamble oak, Utah juniper, muttongrass and prairie junegrass.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Northern Arizona. MLRAs are 35 and 38. This series is of small extent.
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Phoenix, Arizona
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Mohave County, Arizona; Soil survey of Mohave County Area, Arizona, Northeastern Part, and Part of Coconino County; 1992.
REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:
Mollic epipedon - the zone from 1 to 31 inches (A, Bt1, Bt2, Bt3 horizons)
Argillic horizon - the zone from 5 to 61 inches (Bt1, Bt2, Bt3, Bt4 horizons)
Classified according to Soil Taxonomy, Second Edition, 1999; Keys to Soil Taxonomy, Tenth Edition, 2006.
Revised for the correlation of AZ675, 5/2009, WWJ