Natural Resources
Conservation Service
Ecological site R240XY088AK
Rocky Volcanic Cone
Accessed: 11/21/2024
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.
Table 1. Dominant plant species
| Tree |
Not specified |
|---|---|
| Shrub |
Not specified |
| Herbaceous |
Not specified |
Physiographic features
This site occurs on steep volcanic cone slopes.
Table 2. Representative physiographic features
| Landforms |
(1)
Volcanic cone
|
|---|---|
| Elevation | 120 – 600 ft |
| Slope | 100% |
Climatic features
Table 3. Representative climatic features
| Frost-free period (average) | 120 days |
|---|---|
| Freeze-free period (average) | 100 days |
| Precipitation total (average) | 24 in |
Figure 1. Monthly precipitation range
Figure 2. Monthly average minimum and maximum temperature
Influencing water features
Soil features
Soils are deep to very deep and well drained. Soils are very gravelly or very cobbly and textures are medium to coarse. Soil pH is moderately acid. Runoff is negligible and permeability is very rapid.
Table 4. Representative soil features
| Surface texture |
(1) Very cobbly silt loam |
|---|---|
| Family particle size |
(1) Loamy |
| Drainage class | Well drained |
| Permeability class | Very rapid |
| Soil depth | 40 – 65 in |
| Surface fragment cover <=3" | Not specified |
| Surface fragment cover >3" | Not specified |
| Available water capacity (0-40in) |
3.6 – 3.8 in |
| Calcium carbonate equivalent (0-40in) |
Not specified |
| Electrical conductivity (0-40in) |
Not specified |
| Sodium adsorption ratio (0-40in) |
Not specified |
| Soil reaction (1:1 water) (0-40in) |
5.6 – 6 |
| Subsurface fragment volume <=3" (Depth not specified) |
Not specified |
| Subsurface fragment volume >3" (Depth not specified) |
Not specified |
Ecological dynamics
State and transition model
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Ecosystem states
State 1 submodel, plant communities
State 1
Salix arctica/Artemisia tilesii
Community 1.1
Salix arctica/Artemisia tilesii
Shrubs make up about 40% of the composition, forbs about 50% and grasses and sedges 10% of the composition. Total annual vascular herbage production is 1660 pounds/acre. Total live lichen biomass is 1000 pounds/acre.
Figure 3. Annual production by plant type (representative values) or group (midpoint values)
Additional community tables
Table 5. Community 1.1 plant community composition
| Group | Common name | Symbol | Scientific name | Annual production (lb/acre) | Foliar cover (%) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Shrub/Vine
|
||||||
| 1 | 625–675 | |||||
| northern willow | SAAR6 | Salix arctophila | 300–305 | – | ||
| oval-leaf willow | SAOVC | Salix ovalifolia var. cyclophylla | 165–170 | – | ||
| black crowberry | EMNI | Empetrum nigrum | 150–160 | – | ||
| netleaf willow | SARE2 | Salix reticulata | 15–25 | – | ||
| lingonberry | VAVI | Vaccinium vitis-idaea | 0–5 | – | ||
|
Grass/Grasslike
|
||||||
| 1 | 175–225 | |||||
| shortstalk sedge | CAPO | Carex podocarpa | 85–95 | – | ||
| alpine timothy | PHAL2 | Phleum alpinum | 45–60 | – | ||
| showy sedge | CASP5 | Carex spectabilis | 30–40 | – | ||
| fescue | FESTU | Festuca | 0–10 | – | ||
| arctic bluegrass | POARA2 | Poa arctica ssp. arctica | 0–10 | – | ||
| spike trisetum | TRSP2 | Trisetum spicatum | 0–5 | – | ||
| bluegrass | POA | Poa | 0–5 | – | ||
| woodrush | LUZUL | Luzula | 0–1 | – | ||
| arctic lupine | LUAR2 | Lupinus arcticus | 0 | – | ||
|
Forb
|
||||||
| 1 | 800–850 | |||||
| Tilesius' wormwood | ARTI | Artemisia tilesii | 195–210 | – | ||
| Nootka lupine | LUNO | Lupinus nootkatensis | 105–120 | – | ||
| seacoast angelica | ANLU | Angelica lucida | 85–95 | – | ||
| Pacific hemlockparsley | COGM | Conioselinum gmelinii | 75–85 | – | ||
| arctic cinquefoil | PONA6 | Potentilla nana | 65–70 | – | ||
| field sagewort | ARCAB4 | Artemisia campestris ssp. borealis var. borealis | 45–55 | – | ||
| whitish gentian | GEAL2 | Gentiana algida | 40–50 | – | ||
| villous cinquefoil | POVI4 | Potentilla villosa | 35–45 | – | ||
| captiate valerian | VACA3 | Valeriana capitata | 10–20 | – | ||
| Bering chickweed | CEBE2 | Cerastium beeringianum | 10–20 | – | ||
| larkspurleaf monkshood | ACDE2 | Aconitum delphiniifolium | 10–20 | – | ||
| boreal draba | DRBO | Draba borealis | 10–20 | – | ||
| whorled lousewort | PEVE | Pedicularis verticillata | 5–15 | – | ||
| yellow marsh saxifrage | SAHI3 | Saxifraga hirculus | 5–15 | – | ||
| arctic raspberry | RUARS | Rubus arcticus ssp. stellatus | 0–10 | – | ||
| Aleutian violet | VILA6 | Viola langsdorffii | 0–10 | – | ||
| northern starwort | STCA | Stellaria calycantha | 0–10 | – | ||
| alpine bistort | POVI3 | Polygonum viviparum | 0–10 | – | ||
| Hornemann's willowherb | EPHOB | Epilobium hornemannii ssp. behringianum | 0–10 | – | ||
| boreal yarrow | ACMIB | Achillea millefolium var. borealis | 5–10 | – | ||
| bittercress | CARDA | Cardamine | 0–5 | – | ||
| arctic stitchwort | MIAR3 | Minuartia arctica | 0–5 | – | ||
| saxifrage | SAXIF | Saxifraga | 0–5 | – | ||
| heartleaf saxifrage | SANEN | Saxifraga nelsoniana ssp. nelsoniana | 0–1 | – | ||
| tall Jacob's-ladder | POAC | Polemonium acutiflorum | 0–1 | – | ||
| rockjasmine | ANDRO3 | Androsace | 0–1 | – | ||
| Kamchatka rockcress | ARKA6 | Arabis kamchatica | 0–1 | – | ||
| Macoun's poppy | PAMA5 | Papaver macounii | 0 | – | ||
|
Lichen
|
||||||
| 1 | 0–10 | |||||
| whiteworm lichen | THAMN3 | Thamnolia | 0–10 | – | ||
Interpretations
Animal community
This site provides high value winter forage for reindeer. Willows growing on this site are also high forage value during the winter and winter-spring months.
Supporting information
Contributors
Swanson
Rangeland health reference sheet
Interpreting Indicators of Rangeland Health is a qualitative assessment protocol used to determine ecosystem condition based on benchmark characteristics described in the Reference Sheet. A suite of 17 (or more) indicators are typically considered in an assessment. The ecological site(s) representative of an assessment location must be known prior to applying the protocol and must be verified based on soils and climate. Current plant community cannot be used to identify the ecological site.
| Author(s)/participant(s) | |
|---|---|
| Contact for lead author | |
| Date | |
| Approved by | |
| Approval date | |
| Composition (Indicators 10 and 12) based on | Annual Production |
Indicators
-
Number and extent of rills:
-
Presence of water flow patterns:
-
Number and height of erosional pedestals or terracettes:
-
Bare ground from Ecological Site Description or other studies (rock, litter, lichen, moss, plant canopy are not bare ground):
-
Number of gullies and erosion associated with gullies:
-
Extent of wind scoured, blowouts and/or depositional areas:
-
Amount of litter movement (describe size and distance expected to travel):
-
Soil surface (top few mm) resistance to erosion (stability values are averages - most sites will show a range of values):
-
Soil surface structure and SOM content (include type of structure and A-horizon color and thickness):
-
Effect of community phase composition (relative proportion of different functional groups) and spatial distribution on infiltration and runoff:
-
Presence and thickness of compaction layer (usually none; describe soil profile features which may be mistaken for compaction on this site):
-
Functional/Structural Groups (list in order of descending dominance by above-ground annual-production or live foliar cover using symbols: >>, >, = to indicate much greater than, greater than, and equal to):
Dominant:
Sub-dominant:
Other:
Additional:
-
Amount of plant mortality and decadence (include which functional groups are expected to show mortality or decadence):
-
Average percent litter cover (%) and depth ( in):
-
Expected annual annual-production (this is TOTAL above-ground annual-production, not just forage annual-production):
-
Potential invasive (including noxious) species (native and non-native). List species which BOTH characterize degraded states and have the potential to become a dominant or co-dominant species on the ecological site if their future establishment and growth is not actively controlled by management interventions. Species that become dominant for only one to several years (e.g., short-term response to drought or wildfire) are not invasive plants. Note that unlike other indicators, we are describing what is NOT expected in the reference state for the ecological site:
-
Perennial plant reproductive capability:
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