Exam 2 Flashcards
Wetland Determination
Are you in a jurisdictional wetland or not
Wetland delineation
Putting flags at the boundary between jurisdictional wetlands and non-wetlands
Wetland assessment
Evaluating wetlands for functions and values to society (i.e. flood control…)
Wetland classification
Grouping wetlands into classes and subclasses based upon vegetation, hydrology, etc
Wetland mitigation
Creating new wetlands, restoring degraded wetlands, enhancing existing wetlands
Wetland litigation
Process of carrying lawsuit over wetland boundaries
Hydrology of an area is determined by
1) precipitation
2) stratigraphy (rock layer)
3) topography
4) soil permeability
5) plant cover
amount of freshwater on Earth
2% freshwater, 13% potable (87% in ice)
permanent/seasonal abundance of water in all wetlands in form of:
1) direct precipitation 2) runoff 3) overbank flooding 4) ground water discharge 5) tidal flooding
permanently flooded
flooded 100% of time
semipermanently flooded
flooded throughout growing season in most years
seasonally flooded
flooded for extended periods of time during growing season
saturated
water is at or near surface for most of year, surface water seldom present
temporarily flooded
flooded for brief periods
water loss sources
1) evapo-transpiration 2) surface water outflow 3) percolation/groundwater outflow 4) tidal outflow
water gain sources
1) precipitation 2) surface water inflow 3) groundwater inflow 4) tidal inflow
depressional wetlands
within basins or depressions
slope wetlands
wetlands along a gradient and adjacent to deepwater habitats
surface water wetlands
above the water table
groundwater wetlands
at or below water table
soil definition
unconsolidated natural material that supports or can support plant life
organic soil definition
soil mostly of organic matter (histosols-hydric and follists-nonhydric)
histosol definition and 3 types
soil with 16 in or more of organic material on top
- Saprists- most plant material decomposed (muck)
- Fibrists- less than 1/4 material decomposed
- Hemists- even ratio decomposed and not
Follists definition
nonhydric soils of northern boreal areas where ‘follistic epipedons (thick layers)’ may form over well drained soils
mineral soils
consist mostly of mineral matter
hydric mineral soils & why they form
develop under saturation from low-lying topography, groundwater seepage, or slowly permeable layer of clay/bedrock/hardpan
soil profile
description of soil horizons
soil horizon
distinct layer of soil oriented abt parallel to soil surface
A Horizon
topsoil-zone where OM is being added to mineral soil
B horizon
subsoil-zone of max accumulation of materials (more clay, more developed soil structure, lower OM than A)
C horizon
loose parental material not sufficiently weathered (less clay and soil structure than B)
R horizon
loose bedrock usually at depths too great to impact soil development
Solum
upper and most weathered portion (A&B)
matrix color
dominant color of a soil
chroma
strength/purity of color (Hydrics have LOW matrix chroma) -columns of Munsell
hue
major colors of spectrum (ROYGBIV) -pages of Munsell
value
lightness of color -rows of Munsell
depletions
areas that have lost iron typically develop grayish colors
concentrations
mottles that are concentrated in patches and along root channels and other pores
reduced matrix
saturated soils that contain ferrous (liquid) iron and may change color with exposure to air within 30 min
redoxymorphic features
spots or blotches of different color mixed with matrix
-caused by alternating periods of saturation and aeration **hydric soils have these more prominently
depleted matrix
iron has been removed or transformed due to reduction and translocation (low chroma and high value)
gleyed matrix
soil horizon/subhorizon where iron has been completely removed by gleization
A v. S v. F. soils
A soils = all soils
S soils = sandy soils
F soils = loamy soils
soil texture classes
1) sand 2) sandy loam 3) loam 4) silt loam 5) clay loam 6) clay
Alfisols
Deciduous forest soils
Andisols
Volcanic soils
Aridisols
Desert soils
Entisols
Floodplain and sandy soils
Gellisols
Permafrost/ extremely cold soils
Inceptisols
Young soils ( much of Schoharie co)
Mollisols
Grassland soils
Oxisols
Tropical soils
Spodosols
Evergreen forest soils
Ultisols
Older temperate soils
Vertisols
High shrink-swell clayey soils (Lake Champlain)
Hydroperiods
Variation in wetness over time
‘A’ primary field indicators
A1: surface water
A2: high water table
A3: saturation
All other primaries are B indicators
NO SECONDARY A INDICATORS!
Group A indicator category
Observation of surface water or saturated soils
Group B indicator category
Evidence of recent inundation
Group C indicator category
Evidence of current or recent soil inundation
Group D indicator category
Evidence from other site conditions or data
Water Budgets
Models used to show net gains/losses of water changes in a system
