Ecological site F018XI207CA

R018XI007CA	Loamy Foothills This site commonly occurs nearby.

F018XI206CA	Clayey Thermic Marble Hills Site relationships being developed.

Tree	(1) Quercus douglasii (2) Quercus wislizeni
Shrub	Not specified
Herbaceous	(1) Bromus diandrus (2) Bromus hordeaceus

Landforms	(1) Foothills > Lava plateau (2) Foothills > Lahar (3) Foothills > Ridge (4) Foothills > Hill
Runoff class	Medium
Flooding frequency	None
Ponding frequency	None
Elevation	350 – 2000 ft
Slope	3 – 45 %
Aspect	Aspect is not a significant factor

Runoff class	Medium
Flooding frequency	None
Ponding frequency	None
Elevation	120 – 2600 ft
Slope	2 – 60 %

Frost-free period (characteristic range)	230-330 days
Freeze-free period (characteristic range)	370 days
Precipitation total (characteristic range)	30-30 in
Frost-free period (actual range)	210-360 days
Freeze-free period (actual range)	370 days
Precipitation total (actual range)	20-30 in
Frost-free period (average)	280 days
Freeze-free period (average)	370 days
Precipitation total (average)	30 in

Parent material	(1) Colluvium – tuff breccia (2) Residuum – tuff breccia (3) Colluvium – latite (4) Colluvium – volcanic rock
Surface texture	(1) Loam (2) Fine sandy loam (3) Gravelly loam (4) Gravelly sandy loam
Family particle size	(1) Coarse-loamy (2) Loamy-skeletal
Drainage class	Well drained
Permeability class	Moderately slow to moderately rapid
Depth to restrictive layer	24 – 50 in
Soil depth	24 – 50 in
Surface fragment cover <=3"	0 – 7 %
Surface fragment cover >3"	0 – 15 %
Available water capacity (0-40in)	3.3 – 6.1 in
Soil reaction (1:1 water) (0-10in)	5.8 – 6.4
Subsurface fragment volume <=3" (0-60in)	4 – 32 %
Subsurface fragment volume >3" (0-60in)	0 – 32 %

Drainage class	Well drained
Permeability class	Moderately slow to moderately rapid
Depth to restrictive layer	20 – 60 in
Soil depth	20 – 60 in
Surface fragment cover <=3"	0 – 25 %
Surface fragment cover >3"	0 – 45 %
Available water capacity (0-40in)	0.9 – 8.8 in
Soil reaction (1:1 water) (0-10in)	4.6 – 7.3
Subsurface fragment volume <=3" (0-60in)	0 – 60 %
Subsurface fragment volume >3" (0-60in)	0 – 69 %

Ecological dynamics

State and transition model

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State 1
Representative State (Blue oak/ live oak woodland)

Community 1.1
Representative plant community

Open QUDO/ interior live oak/ PISA2 woodlands (~ 50% canopy cover). Shrubs such as CECU, AECA, TODI, HEAR5, or ARCTO3 may be present. Dense annual grasses and forbs in understory.

Community 1.2
Post-fire plant community

QUDO cover is ~ 25% with multiple age classes (yet very little regeneration). Low cover of QUWI2. Shrubs usually absent, but seed source generally nearby. Dense annual grasses and forbs in understory.

Community 1.3
QUDO recruitment community

Dominated by younger cohort of smaller QUDO (5-13 feet tall), Early phases will be dominated by seedlings. Shrub layer may play key role in this phase.

Pathway 1.1a
Community 1.1 to 1.2

Representative plant community

Post-fire plant community

This community pathway occurs when a high severity fire removes most of the woody vegetation. Some oaks remain on or near the site. Alternatively, brushing or tree clearing may cause this community pathway.

Pathway 1.1b
Community 1.1 to 1.3

Representative plant community

QUDO recruitment community

This uncommon community pathway occurs when favorable conditions such as abundant moisture and/or seeds (acorns) etc. cause oak regeneration. Low intensity fire or clearing can also result in a resprouting of oaks.

Pathway 1.2a
Community 1.2 to 1.3

Post-fire plant community

QUDO recruitment community

This community pathway occurs shortly after CP 1.1a, resulting in profuse sprouting of oak trees, some of which escape herbivory and establish into sapling stage.

Pathway 1.3a
Community 1.3 to 1.1

QUDO recruitment community

Representative plant community

This community pathway occurs with normal time and growth.

Pathway 1.3b
Community 1.3 to 1.2

QUDO recruitment community

Post-fire plant community

This community pathway occurs with intense brushing/tree clearing which removes most of woody vegetation.

State 2
Annual Grassland State

Community 2.1
Grass-dominated system

This community phase is dominated by annuals. AVFA, BROMU, HORDE, and VULPI make up > 50 % cover.

Community 2.2
Forb-dominated system (Erodium)

This community phase is dominated by annuals. ERODI > 50 % cover

Pathway 2.1a
Community 2.1 to 2.2

Grass-dominated system

Forb-dominated system (Erodium)

This community pathway occurs as forbs become more dominant, often following low winter precipitation and reduced litter layers.

Pathway 2.2a
Community 2.2 to 2.1

Forb-dominated system (Erodium)

Grass-dominated system

This community pathway occurs as grasses become more dominant, often in response to higher litter levels.

State 3
Invasive Annuals State

Community 3.1
Invasive grass-dominated

Consists of very open communities with > 25% canopy cover of invasive grasses including TACA8 and AETR.

Community 3.2
Invasive forb-dominated (>25 % CC)

CESO3 or CEME2 dominate the understory.

Pathway 3.1a
Community 3.1 to 3.2

Invasive grass-dominated

Invasive forb-dominated (>25 % CC)

This community pathway occurs as invasive forb species become dominant.

Pathway 3.2a
Community 3.2 to 3.1

Invasive forb-dominated (>25 % CC)

Invasive grass-dominated

This community pathway occurs as invasive grass species become dominant.

Transition T1.a
State 1 to 2

This transition occurs after mechanical clearing and/or grazing management that results in loss of oak and acorn (seed) source.

Transition T1.b
State 1 to 3

This transition occurs when invasive grasses or forbs become established.

Restoration pathway R2.a
State 2 to 1

This restoration pathway occurs with tree planting, often requires shade screens, and seedling protection from browsers to be successful.

Transition T2.a
State 2 to 3

This transition occurs after undesirable invasive plants become established.

Restoration pathway R3.a
State 3 to 1

This restoration pathway occurs with tree planting, often requires shade screens, and seedling protection from browsers to be successful. This also may require integrated weed management to reduce the seedling’s competition from annual invasive species.

Restoration pathway R3.b
State 3 to 2

This restoration pathway occurs with integrated weed management and may require mowing, herbicides, and/or biological control.

Additional community tables

Table 7. Community 1.1 plant community composition

Group	Common name	Symbol	Scientific name	Annual production ()	Foliar cover (%)

Table 8. Community 1.2 plant community composition

Group	Common name	Symbol	Scientific name	Annual production ()	Foliar cover (%)

Table 9. Community 1.3 plant community composition

Group	Common name	Symbol	Scientific name	Annual production ()	Foliar cover (%)

Table 10. Community 2.1 plant community composition

Group	Common name	Symbol	Scientific name	Annual production ()	Foliar cover (%)

Table 11. Community 2.2 plant community composition

Group	Common name	Symbol	Scientific name	Annual production ()	Foliar cover (%)

Table 12. Community 3.1 plant community composition

Group	Common name	Symbol	Scientific name	Annual production ()	Foliar cover (%)

Table 13. Community 3.2 plant community composition

Group	Common name	Symbol	Scientific name	Annual production ()	Foliar cover (%)

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	09/01/2026
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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Natural ResourcesConservation Service

Ecological site F018XI207CA

Deep Volcanic Plateaus and Hills

Last updated: 4/24/2024 Accessed: 09/01/2026

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General information

MLRA notes

LRU notes

Classification relationships

Ecological site concept

Associated sites

Similar sites

Table 1. Dominant plant species

Natural Resources
Conservation Service

Last updated: 4/24/2024
Accessed: 09/01/2026