Natural Resources
Conservation Service
Ecological site R010XA038ID
Stony Clayey 8-16 PZ ARAR8/PSSPS
Last updated: 12/13/2023
Accessed: 11/13/2024
General information
Provisional. A provisional ecological site description has undergone quality control and quality assurance review. It contains a working state and transition model and enough information to identify the ecological site.
MLRA notes
Major Land Resource Area (MLRA): 010X–Central Rocky and Blue Mountain Foothills
This MLRA is characterized by gently rolling to steep hills, plateaus, and low mountains at the foothills of the Blue Mountains in Oregon and the Central Rocky Mountains in Idaho. The geology of this area is highly varied and ranges from Holocene volcanics to Cretaceous sedimentary rocks. Mollisols are the dominant soil order and the soil climate is typified by mesic or frigid soil temperature regimes, and xeric or aridic soil moisture regimes. Elevation ranges from 1,300 to 6,600 feet (395 to 2,010 meters), increasing from west to east. The climate is characterized by dry summers and snow dominated winters with precipitation averaging 8 to 16 inches (205 to 405 millimeters) and increasing from west to east. These factors support plant communities with shrub-grass associations with considerable acreage of sagebrush grassland. Big sagebrush, bluebunch wheatgrass, and Idaho fescue are the dominant species. Stiff sagebrush, low sagebrush, and Sandberg bluegrass are often dominant on sites with shallow restrictive layers. Western juniper is one of the few common tree species and since European settlement has greatly expanded its extent in Oregon. Nearly half of the MLRA is federally owned and managed by the Bureau of Land Management. Most of the area is used for livestock grazing with areas accessible by irrigation often used for irrigated agriculture.
For further information, see "Land Resource Regions and Major Land Resource Areas of the United States, the Caribbean, and the Pacific Basin (U.S. Department of Agriculture Handbook 296, 2006)" available online at: https://www.nrcs.usda.gov/wps/portal/nrcs/detail/soils/survey/?cid=nrcs142p2_053624
Classification relationships
Artemisia arbuscula/ Agropyron spicatum HT, M.A. Fosberg, A. H. Winward. 1983. Sagebrush-Grass Habitat Types of Southern Idaho. University of Idaho, Moscow, Idaho. Bulletin Number “35”.
Ecological site concept
• Site occurs on uplands
• Slopes generally less than 30%, occurring on all aspects
• Soils are 20" or less
• Site not associated with recent lava flows
• Surface texture is generally Clay Loam to Silty Clay but may be coarser
Associated sites
R010XA004ID |
Loamy 12-16 PZ ARTRV/FEID-PSSPS Adjacent low slope areas with deeper soils |
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R010XA009ID |
South Slope Gravelly 12-16 PZ Adjacent south slopes |
R010XA011ID |
Clayey North 16-22 PZ Adjacent north slopes |
R010XA020ID |
Mixed Shrub 12-16 PZ Adjacent low slope areas with very shallow soils |
R010XA021ID |
South Slope Fractured 12-16 PZ Adjacent south slopes on fractured bedrock |
R010XA025ID |
South Slope Loamy 11-13 PZ ARTRW8/PSSPS Adjacent south slopes |
R010XA026ID |
Loamy 11-13 PZ ARTRW8/PSSPS Adjacent low slope areas |
Similar sites
R010XA011ID |
Clayey North 16-22 PZ Occurring on north slopes greater than 30% |
---|---|
R010XA007ID |
Shallow Stony Loam 8-16 PZ Surface texture is generally Loam to Silt Loam but may be finer |
Table 1. Dominant plant species
Tree |
Not specified |
---|---|
Shrub |
(1) Artemisia arbuscula |
Herbaceous |
(1) Pseudoroegneria spicata ssp. spicata |
Click on box and path labels to scroll to the respective text.
Ecosystem states
T1A | - | Improper grazing management, frequent fire |
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State 1 submodel, plant communities
1.1A | - | Fire |
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1.1B | - | Improper grazing management, no fire |
1.2A | - | Prescribed grazing, no fire |
1.3A | - | Prescribed grazing, no fire |
1.3B | - | Fire |