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Natural Resources
Conservation Service
Ecological site R048AY014NM
Mountain Valley Dry
Last updated: 3/05/2024
Accessed: 08/17/2024
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.
![Location map](/images/maps/R048AY014NM.png)
Figure 1. Mapped extent
Areas shown in blue indicate the maximum mapped extent of this ecological site. Other ecological sites likely occur within the highlighted areas. It is also possible for this ecological site to occur outside of highlighted areas if detailed soil survey has not been completed or recently updated.
MLRA notes
Major Land Resource Area (MLRA): 048A–Southern Rocky Mountains
This area is in Colorado (76 percent), New Mexico (11 percent), Utah (8 percent), and Wyoming (5 percent). It makes up about 45,920 square miles (119,000 square kilometers). The towns Jemez Springs, Los Alamos, Red River and Eagle Nest, New Mexico, are in this MLRA. This MLRA has numerous national forests, the Carson National Forest and part of the Santa Fe National Forest in New Mexico. The Jemez, Picuris, Santa Clara, and Taos Indian Reservations are in this MLRA. Most of this area is in the Southern Rocky Mountains Province of the Rocky Mountain System. Small parts of the southwest corner and some isolated areas farther west are in the Canyon Lands Section of the same province and division. The Southern Rocky Mountains consist primarily of two belts of strongly sloping to precipitous mountain ranges trending north to south. Several basins, or parks, are between the belts. The ranges include the Sangre de Cristo Mountains, Jemez Mountains, and Tusas Mountains. Elevation typically ranges from 6,500 to 13,167 feet (1,980 to 1,039 meters) in this area. The Rio Grande is a National Wild and Scenic River in northern New Mexico, which is in the southern part of this MLRA.
The mountains in this area were formed mainly by crustal uplifts during the late Cretaceous and early Tertiary periods. The rocks exposed in the mountains are mostly Precambrian igneous and metamorphic rocks, which in many places are flanked by steeply dipping Mesozoic sedimentary rocks. Younger igneous rocks, primarily basalt and andesitic lava flows, tuffs, breccias, and conglomerates, are throughout this area. Representative formations in this area are the Silver Plume and Pikes Peak granites, San Juan Volcanics, and Mancos Shale. Many of the highest mountain ranges were reshaped by glaciation during the Pleistocene. Alluvial fans at the base of the mountains are recharge zones for local basin and valley fill aquifers. They also are important sources of sand and gravel.
The dominant soil orders in this MLRA are Mollisols, Alfisols, Inceptisols, and Entisols. The soils in the area dominantly have a frigid or cryic soil temperature regime and an ustic or udic soil moisture regime. Mineralogy is typically mixed, smectitic, or paramicaceous. In areas with granite, gneiss, and schist bedrock, Glossocryalfs (Seitz, Granile, and Leadville series) and Haplocryolls (Rogert series) formed in colluvium on mountain slopes. Dystrocryepts (Leighcan and Mummy series) formed on mountain slopes and summits at the higher elevations. In areas of andesite and rhyolite bedrock, Dystrocryepts (Endlich and Whitecross series) formed in colluvium on mountain slopes. In areas of sedimentary bedrock, Haplustolls (Towave series) formed on mountain slopes at low elevations and with low precipitation. Haplocryolls (Lamphier and Razorba series), Argicryolls (Cochetopa series), and Haplocryalfs (Needleton series) formed in colluvium on mountain slopes at high elevations.
LRU notes
This site is part of the RM-2 sub-resource area. This site is found on the west side of Sangre de Cristo mountains, Tusas Mountains (southern San Juan mountains) and Jemez Mountains.
Classification relationships
This ecological site is correlated to soil components at the Major Land Resource Area (MLRA) level which is further described in USDA AgHandbook 296.
Ecological site concept
This site occurs on broad valleys, overflow areas adjacent to intermittent streams and depressional areas subject to run-in of moisture from adjacent sites. However, this site is often highly dissected, and run-in is non-effective. Slopes range from 1 to 8 percent. Elevation ranges from 7,200 to 8,000 feet above sea level.
The soils are deep to very deep and well drained. Surface textures is usually clay loam.
Subsoils is usually clay.
This ecological site used to have the ID number of R048BY007NM in RM-2 subresource area in 1982.
Associated sites
R048AY015NM |
Mountain Shale Dry This site occurs on nearly level to sloping landscapes below steeper slopes of interbedded sandstone and shale. Slopes range from 1 to 35 percent. Elevation ranges from 6,800 to 7,700 feet above sea level. Soil depths range from shallow to moderately deep. Surface textures are generally clay loam and are very thin. Subsoils are generally clays. The amount of surface skeletal fragments varies from no fragments to very channery and erosion pavement forms as the surface is eroded. Permeability is slow to very slow. This ecological site used to have the ID number of R048BY008NM in RM-2 subresource area in 1982. |
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R048AY016NM |
Mountain Meadows This site occurs on basins and valleys and below seeps and springs on mountain side slopes. Drainages associated with the site are not dissected and allow the water to fan out. This results in a high water table and even some surface water in the spring and summer. Slopes are less than 5 percent. Elevation ranges from 7,200 to 9,000 feet above sea level. The soils are deep and somewhat poorly drained with a high water table. Depth of the water table ranges from 0 to 60 inches. The surface soil textures are loam, silt loam, or clay loam. Subsoils range from gravelly loam, gravelly clay, clay loam, silty clay loam, silt loam, to clay. The soil profiles are characterized by high amounts of organic matter and dark colors. Permeability is moderate to slow, runoff is medium, and water-holding capacity is high. This ecological site used to have the ID number of R048BY006NM in RM-2 subresource area in 1982. |
Similar sites
R048AY003NM |
Mountain Valley This site is located in mountain valleys in the ponderosa pine zone. It has gentle to moderate slopes and receives occasional light overflow from the main stream course or adjacent side slopes. The alluvial slopes immediately adjacent to the main stream are also included in this site. Slopes are 0-5%. Along valley bottoms where drainage is poor, it may blend with the Mountain Meadow ecological site. This site differs from the Mountain Meadow ecological site in the lack of high water table. Elevation ranges from 7,000 to 9,000 feet above sea level. Soils on this site are well drained and deep to very deep. The surface layer is loam, sandy loam or fine sandy loam with subsoil of loam, clay loam, or sandy clay loam. These soils have moderate to moderately high permeability. Runoff is medium. Available water-holding capacity is high. Effective rooting depth is 20 inches to more than 60 inches. Severe gullying can carry off most of the water, and a loss of topsoil greatly reduces water intake. Gullies that carry off extra water will drastically alter the moisture-plant relationship in many areas. |
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R048AY016NM |
Mountain Meadows This site occurs on basins and valleys and below seeps and springs on mountain side slopes. Drainages associated with the site are not dissected and allow the water to fan out. This results in a high water table and even some surface water in the spring and summer. Slopes are less than 5 percent. Elevation ranges from 7,200 to 9,000 feet above sea level. The soils are deep and somewhat poorly drained with a high water table. Depth of the water table ranges from 0 to 60 inches. The surface soil textures are loam, silt loam, or clay loam. Subsoils range from gravelly loam, gravelly clay, clay loam, silty clay loam, silt loam, to clay. The soil profiles are characterized by high amounts of organic matter and dark colors. Permeability is moderate to slow, runoff is medium, and water-holding capacity is high. This ecological site used to have the ID number of R048BY006NM in RM-2 subresource area in 1982. |
Table 1. Dominant plant species
Tree |
Not specified |
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Shrub |
Not specified |
Herbaceous |
(1) Pascopyrum smithii |
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