LOCATION ULIKTUK                 AK

Established Series
MJS/MPS
11/2024

ULIKTUK SERIES

Depth class: very deep
Drainage class: poorly drained
Parent material: sandy and gravelly alluvium derived from metamorphic and sedimentary rock
Landscape: river valleys
Landform: flood plains
Slopes: 0 to 8 percent
Mean annual precipitation: about 400 mm (16 in)
Mean annual air temperature: about -4 degrees C. (25 degrees F.)
Frost-free period: 70 to 90 days

TAXONOMIC CLASS: Sandy-skeletal, mixed Typic Cryaquents

TYPICAL PEDON: Uliktuk loamy sand in a willow community on a linear, linear talf on a slope of 0 percent at an elevation of 233m (764 ft)

Oi--0 to 4 cm (0 to 2 in); slightly decomposed plant material; very dark brown (10YR 2/2) moist, dark grayish brown (10YR 4/2) dry; common very fine and fine roots throughout; neutral (pH 7.2); clear wavy boundary. (1 to 5 cm, 0.5 to 2 in thick)

Bw--4 to 11 cm (2 to 4 in); loamy sand; dark grayish brown (10YR 4/2) moist, light brownish gray (10YR 6/2) dry; weak medium subangular blocky structure; loose, nonsticky, nonplastic; nonsmeary; common very fine and fine roots throughout; common very fine irregular pores; noneffervescent; slightly alkaline (pH 7.5); gradual wavy boundary. (3 to 10 cm, 1 to 4 in thick)

Cg--11 to 200 cm (4 to 79 in); extremely channery loamy coarse sand; dark gray (10YR 4/1) moist, gray (10YR 6/1) dry; single grain; loose, nonsticky, nonplastic; nonsmeary; few very fine and fine interstitial pores; 55 percent channers and 10 percent flagstones; noneffervescent; slightly alkaline (pH 7.8)

TYPE LOCATION: Nulato Hills - Continental Divide and Blackburn Hills Soil Survey Area, Alaska; latitude 64.3785630, longitude -159.9168916, datum WGS84, UTM north 7139518.76 and UTM east 7139518.76, zone 4, datum WGS84.

RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS:

Soil moisture regime: aquic
Soil temperature regime: cryic
Mean annual soil temperature: 0 to 3 degrees C. (32 to 37 degrees F.)
Thickness of organic material: 1 to 5 cm (0 to 2 in)
Thickness of ochric epipedon: 1 to 5 cm (0.5 to 2 in)
Depth to reduced matrix: 8 to 15 cm (3 to 6 in)

Oi horizon:
Hue: 7.5YR or 10YR
Value: 2 or 2.5 moist, 4 dry
Chroma: 1 to 2
Texture: slightly decomposed material
Organic matter: 60 to 90 percent
Reaction class: slightly acid to neutral (pH 6.1 to 7.3)

Bw horizon:
Hue: 10YR
Value: 4 or 5 moist, 6 or 7 dry
Chroma: 1 to 3
Texture: very fine sandy loam, loamy sand
Sand: 60 to 89 percent
Silt: 3 to 39 percent
Clay: 1 to 8 percent
Organic matter: 0.1 to 2.5 percent
Reaction class: slightly acid to slightly alkaline (pH 6.1 to 7.8)

Cg horizon:
Hue: 10YR or 10Y
Value: 3 to 5 moist, 5 to 7 dry
Chroma: 1 or 2
Texture: loamy coarse sand or its channery analogues
Sand: 71 to 89 percent
Silt: 3 to 28 percent
Clay: 1 to 8 percent
Rock fragments: 40 to 75 percent
Channers: 40 to 70 percent
Flagstones: 0 to 20 percent
Organic matter: 0.1 to 2 percent
Reaction class: slightly acid to slightly alkaline (pH 6.1 to 7.8)

Some pedons lack an organic surface.

COMPETING SERIES: These are the Anan, Astrolable, Longarm, and Ustiugof (AK), Eachuston (CO, MT), and Jurvannah (ID) series.
Anan soils have a mean annual air temperature of 5 degrees C. (41 degrees F.)
Astrolable soils have very frequent, very brief flooding, have redoximorphic iron concentrations and depletions within 45 cm (18 in)
Longarm soils have occasional, long flooding, and have a mean annual air temperature of -3 to 2 degrees C. (28 to 36 degrees F.)
Ustiugof soils have an A horizon, have rare flooding, and have a mean annual air temperature of 0 to 1 degrees C. (32 to 34 degrees F.)

Eachuston have an A horizon and have a mean annual air temperature of 2 to 3 degrees C. (36 to 37 degrees F.)
Jurvannah soils lack an organic surface and have a mean annual air temperature of 4 to 6 degrees C. (40 to 42 degrees F.)

GEOGRAPHIC SETTING:
Elevation: 0 to 325 meters (0 to 1065 feet)
Parent material: sandy and gravelly alluvium derived from metamorphic and sedimentary rock
Landform: flood plains
Slopes: 0 to 8 percent
Mean annual precipitation: 300 to 500 mm (12 to 20 in)
Mean annual air temperature: -6 to -1 degrees C. (21 to 30 degrees F.)
Frost free period: 70 to 90 days

GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Kaluk, Sardinecreek, Shovelcreek and Wllowriver soils.
Kaluk soils lack an ochric epipedon, have an oxyaquic soil moisture subclass, lack an organic surface, have frequent, brief flooding, and occur on point bars of flood plains
Sardinecreek soils have aquic conditions starting between 25 to 50 cm (10 to 20 in), have a folistic epipedon, have a cambic horizon, have a gelic soil temperature regime, have a loamy-skeletal particle size class, have very rare flooding, and occur on terraces
Shovelcreek soils lack aquic conditions, have rare flooding., and occur on similar landforms on flood plains
Willowriver soils lack aquic conditions, have occasional, brief flooding, and occur on similar landforms on flood plains

DRAINAGE AND SATURATED HYDRAULIC CONDUCTIVITY:
Drainage class: poorly drained
Saturation during normal years: saturated at a depth of between 0 and 25 cm (0 and 10 in) for at least two weeks during the growing season
Saturated Hydraulic Conductivity: very high in the Oi horizon, moderately high to very high in the Bw horizon, very high in the Cg horizon
Permeability: rapid to very rapid in the Oi horizon, slow to very rapid in the Bw horizon, rapid to very rapid in the Cg horizon
Runoff: high to very high
Flooding: frequent, long

USE AND VEGETATION:
Use: wildlife habitat, recreation, and subsistence
Native vegetation: shrubby cinquefoil, Bebb willow, balsam poplar, dwarf raspberry, Canadian burnet, arctic aster, white spruce, moss

DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: MLRA 240, Nulato Hills-Southern Seward Peninsula Highlands. The series is of small extent.

SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (SSRO) RESPONSIBLE: Wasilla, Alaska

SERIES ESTABLISHED: Nulato Hills - Continental Divide and Blackburn Hills Soil Survey, Alaska, 2024.

REMARKS: Diagnostic features and horizons recognized in this profile include:

Particle-size control section: 29 to 104 cm (11 to 41 in)

Ochric epipedon: 0 to 4 cm (0 to 4 in) (Oe horizon)

Reduced matrix: 11 to 200 cm (4 to 79 in) (Cg horizon)

Aquic conditions: 11 to 200 cm (4 to 79 in) (Cg horizon)

ADDITIONAL DATA:

User pedon ID: S2021AK290791

KSSL lab pedon: 22N0124

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National Cooperative Soil Survey
U.S.A.