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QUANTITATIVE SOIL DESCRIPTIONS FOR ECOREGIONS OF THE UNITED STATES
Citation:
Shirazi, M A., C. B. Johnson, J M. Omernik, R D. White, P. K. Haggerty, AND G. E. Griffith. QUANTITATIVE SOIL DESCRIPTIONS FOR ECOREGIONS OF THE UNITED STATES. JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY. Soil Science Society of America, Madison, WI, 32:550-561, (2003).
Description:
Researchers have defined ecological regions of the United States based on patterns in the coincidence of terrestrial, aquatic, abiotic and biotic characteristics that are associated with spatial differences in ecosystems. Ecoregions potentially facilitate regional research, monitoring, and environmental management. When the focus is upon a particular resource, it is helpful to quantitatively describe the linkage between ecosystem properties and the resource. Soils are an important resource in ecosystems that provide food and water quality functions. We used the nationwide State Soil Geographic Data Base(STATSGO) to examine the soils of 84 Level III ecoregions in the United States. Among the 24 soil characteristics studied were texture, rock fragments, available water capacity, bulk density and organic matter. We described how well the ecoregion boundaries matched soil map unit areas and the diversity of map unit textures in them. Ecoregion soil properties and predictability were compared with national averages. These quantitative soil descriptions complement and enrich the qualitative ecoregion descriptions.