LOCATION WAGS WYEstablished Series
TAXONOMIC CLASS: Fine, smectitic, nonacid, mesic Ustic Torriorthents
TYPICAL PEDON: Wags clay loam -- on a northeast facing slope of seven percent, utilized as rangeland. (Colors are for dry soil unless otherwise stated.)
A--0 to 1 inch; light brownish gray (2.5Y 6/2) clay loam, grayish brown (2.5Y 5/2) moist; weak medium subangular blocky structure; very hard, firm, sticky and plastic; thin vesicular crust on soil surface; common fine and very fine, few coarse and medium roots; 10 percent channery surface lag; neutral (pH 6.6); abrupt smooth boundary. (1 to 3 inches thick)
C1--1 to 11 inches; light brownish gray (2.5Y 6/2) silty clay, grayish brown (2.5Y 5/2) moist; massive; extremely hard, very firm, very sticky and very plastic; common fine and very fine, few coarse and medium roots; slightly acid (pH 6.4); clear wavy boundary.
C2--11 to 23 inches; light brownish gray (2.5Y 6/2) silty clay, grayish brown (2.5Y 5/2) moist; massive; very hard, firm, sticky and plastic; few medium, fine, and very fine roots; 50 percent soft shale platelets, 5 percent hard shale channers; slightly acid (pH 6.2); clear wavy boundary. (Combined thickness of the C horizon is 22 to 36 inches)
Cr--23 inches; soft, grayish brown to dark gray nonacid shale.
TYPE LOCATION: Campbell County, Wyoming; about 1050 feet north and 250 feet east of the southwest corner of section 35, T. 44 N., R. 69 W.
RANGE IN CHARACTERISTICS: Depth to bedrock ranges from 20 to 40 inches. The particle-size control section averages 40 to 60 percent clay and less than 15 percent fine and coarser sand. The soil is dry in the moisture control section more than half the time cumulative that the soil temperature at a depth of 20 inches is 41 degrees F., and is dry in all parts of the control section for at least 60 consecutive days from July 15 to October 25, and for at least 90 cumulative days during this period. The mean annual soil temperature is 47 to 51 degrees F., and the soil temperature at a depth of 20 inches is 41 degrees F. or more for 175 to 192 days.
The A horizon has hue of 10YR or 2.5Y, value of 5 to 7 dry, 4 or 5 moist, and chroma of 2 or 3. It is silty clay, clay, clay loam or silty clay loam. It has up to 35 percent shale channers in the matrix. A channery lag of 5 to 50 percent hard shale fragments occurs in most pedons. It is neutral or slighty alkaline.
The C horizon has hue of 10YR or 2.5Y, value of 5 to 7 dry, 4 to 6 moist, and chroma of 2 to 4. Textures are clay or silty clay. It has 0 to 60 percent soft shale channers which break down on pretreatment with sodium hexametaphosphate, and 0 to 15 percent hard shale channers. Up to four percent authigenic gypsum occurs in some pedons. It is slightly acid through slightly alkaline.
The Cr horizon consists of dark brown to light gray nonacid shale, or interbedded shale and very fine grained sandstone.
COMPETING SERIES: These are the Rhoame and Topeman series. Rhoame and Topeman soils lack bedrock above 40 inches.
GEOGRAPHIC SETTING: Wags soils are on upland breaks, ridges and hills. The soils formed in residuum or slope alluvium over residuum derived from nonacid shale. Slopes are 3 to 30 percent. Elevations are 3,800 to 5,200 feet. The mean annual precipitaiton is 10 to 14 inches, half of which falls as rain and snow from late March through June. The mean annual air temperature ranges from 44 to 50 degrees F. The frost-free season is about 105 to 130 days.
GEOGRAPHICALLY ASSOCIATED SOILS: These are the Gateson, Hilight, Samday and Taluce soils. Gateson soils are fine-loamy and have argillic horizons. Hilight, Samday, and Taluce soils are shallow. Also, Taluce soils have less than 18 percent clay throughout.
DRAINAGE AND PERMEABILITY: Well drained; rapid runoff; slow permeability.
USE AND VEGETATION: These soils are utilized for livestock grazing and wildlife habitat. The native vegetation is mainly green needlegrass, western wheatgrass, blue grama and big sagebrush. Ponderosa pine occur erratically on this soil in some areas.
DISTRIBUTION AND EXTENT: Wags soils occur in northeast Wyoming. The series is of limited extent.
MLRA SOIL SURVEY REGIONAL OFFICE (MO) RESPONSIBLE: Denver, Colorado
SERIES ESTABLISHED: Campbell County, Wyoming, Southern Part; 1995.
REMARKS: Diagnostic horizons and features recognized in this pedon are: 1. Ochric epipedon - 0 to 1 inch (A horizon); 2. Ustic-Aridic intergrade - the soils are dry in all parts of the moisture control section less than three-fourths of the time that the soil temperature at a depth of 20 inches is 41 degrees F. or higher, and have an aridic moisture regime bordering on ustic. The name is taken from a Campbell County landmark.