LOCATION TECOLOTE CO NMEstablished Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Loamy-skeletal, mixed, superactive, frigid Typic Haplustalfs
TYPICAL PEDON: Tecolote very stony loam, forested. (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise noted.)
0i--0 to 1 inches; slightly decomposed organic material consisting mainly of leaves, twigs, needles, and bark. (0 to 2 inches thick)
A--1 to 4 inches; brown (10YR 4/3) very stony loam, very dark grayish brown (10YR 3/2) moist; weak fine granular structure; slightly hard, very friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; 25 percent gravel and 40 percent rounded cobbles and stones; slightly acid; clear wavy boundary. (1 to 7 inches thick)
E--4 to 13 inches; pinkish gray (7.5YR 7/2) very gravelly loamy sand, brown(7.5YR 5/2) moist; weak fine granular structure; soft, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; 50 percent gravel and 10 percent rounded cobbles and stones; slightly acid; gradual wavy boundary. (6 to 20 inches thick)
BE--13 to 30 inches; brown (7.5YR 5/4) extremely gravelly sandy loam, brown (7.5YR 4/4) moist; weak coarse subangular blocky structure; slightly hard, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; 55 percent gravel and 15 percent cobbles and stones; neutral; clear wavy boundary. (0 to 20 inches thick)
Bt--30 to 46 inches; reddish brown (5YR 5/4) extremely gravelly sandy clay loam, reddish brown (5YR 4/4) moist; moderate coarse subangular blocky structure; hard, friable, slightly sticky and slightly plastic; thin discontinuous waxlike coatings on faces of peds and on portions of coarse fragments; 60 percent gravel and 20 percent rounded cobbles and stones; neutral; gradual irregular boundary. (10 to 25 inches thick)
C--46 to 66 inches; light brown (7.5YR 6/4) extremely gravelly loamy sand, brown (7.5YR 5/4) moist; massive; silghtly hard, very friable, nonsticky and nonplastic; 50 percent gravel and 20 percent rounded cobbles and stones; neutral.
TYPE LOCATION: El Paso County, Colorado; at U.S. Air Force Academy along the pipeline road in the SW 1/4 of sec. 16, T. 12 S., R. 67 W.; Palmer Lake USGS quad; lat. 39 degrees 00 minutes 03 seconds N, long. 104 degrees 54 minutes 06 seconds W, NAD 83.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:
Soil moisture: ustic moisture regime, typic subclass.
Mean annual soil temperature: 42 to 46 degrees F.
Depth to bedrock: is 60 inches or more.
Depth to the base of the Bt: more than 40 inches.
Rock fragments: 35 to 80 percent; cobbles and stones range from 15 to 50 percent, and gravel ranges from 20 to 40 percent.
The O horizons are missing in some pedons.
A horizon:
Hue: 7.5YR or 10YR
Value: 3 to 6 dry, 2 to 5 moist
Chroma: 2 or 3 dry, 1 or 2 moist
E horizon:
Hue: 7.5YR or 10YR
Value: 6 to 8 dry, 4 or 5 moist
Chroma: 2 or 3 dry, 2 or 3 moist
Texture: fine sandy loam, sandy loam, loamy sand, or loam.
Some pedons have weak thin platy structure.
Reaction: slightly acid to slightly alkaline.
BE horizon (if present):
Hue: 7.5YR or 10YR
Value: 5 to 7 dry, 4 to 6 moist
Chroma: 3 to 5 dry, 2 to 4 moist
Reaction: slightly acid to slightly alkaline.
Bt horizon:
Hue: 5YR or 7.5YR
Value: 5 or 6 dry, 4 or 5 moist
Chroma: 3 or 4 dry or moist
Texture: clay loam or sandy clay loam
Some pedons are high in very fine sand.
Reaction: moderately acid to slightly alkaline.
COMPETING SERIES:
Colomex (NM): has discontinuity
Laventana (NM): bedrock at 40 to 60 inches
Macmeal (MT): has secondary carbonates
Mocmont (MT): has B/E horizons
Namon (UT): bedrock at 40 to 60 inches
Sheek (CO): has very stony Bt
Skyview (MT): bedrock at 20 to 40 inches
Sonsela (NM): does not have E horizons
Towaoc soils: does not have an E horizon
Trapps (MT): has secondary carbonates
Vision (MT): does not have E horizons
Xankey soils: does not have an E horizon
Wahatoya (CO): bedrock at 20 to 40 inches
Ymark (MT): bedrock at 40 to 60 inches
Yourame (MT): has secondary carbonates
Yreka (MT): has E/Bt horizons
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING:
Landforms: sideslopes, backslopes, and toeslopes of mountains.
Elevation: 7,000 to 8,800 feet
Slopes: 5 to 70 percent
Parent material: weathered felsite or sediments from felsite; this material in places appears to have been modified by loess deposits.
Average annual precipitation: 15 to 25 inches.
Average annual temperature: 40 to 45 degrees F
Frost free season: 70 to 110 days..
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Erramouspe, Pinata and Stroupe soils. Erramouspe and Stroupe soils do not have a frigid temperature regime; also, Stroupe soils have a mollic epipedon. Pinata soils have more than 35 percent clay in the particle-size control section.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Well drained. Permeability is moderate. Runoff is medium on 5 to 20 percent and high on slopes greater than 20 percent.
USE AND VEGETATION: Forest, grazing, wildlife and recreation. Vegetation is ponderosa pine, some Rocky Mountain Douglas-fir, scattered pinyon and juniper and Gambel oak; some Arizona fescue, bullgrass, Parry's oatgrass, deergrass and mountain muhly in the understory.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Mountains and foothills in Colorado and northern New Mexico. The series is moderately extensive. LRR E, MLRA 48A and 49.
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Bozeman, Montana
SERIES ESTABLISHED: El Paso County, Colorado, 1975.
REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are:
Ochric epipedon: 1 to 4 inches. (A horizon)
Albic horizon: 4 to 13 inches. (E horizon)
Argillic horizon: 30 to 46 inches. (Bt horizon)
Type location was moved from Lincoln County, NM to El Paso County, CO on 5/01. The series range was narrowed to MLRAs 48A and 49. It is unclear whether the historical climax plant community at the type location includes Douglas-fir or whether it is only ponderosa pine. At the El Paso County type location there is no pinyon-juniper vegetation, which was on the original type location in New Mexico; this is now outside the series concept. The moisture regime subclass is left as typic ustic on the 11/2007 revision, but if it can be verified that this series typically has a Douglas-fir climax plant community, the classification will likely be updated to a Udic subgroup, udic ustic moisture subclass.