Natural Resources
Conservation Service

Ecological site F038XC311AZ

Sandstone Hills
20-24" p.z.
(PIED, PIMOF, PIPO)

Last updated: 9/05/2019
Accessed: 09/16/2026

Home / esd CATALOG / MLRA 038X / ecological site F038XC311AZ

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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.

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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): 038X–Mogollon Transition South

AZ 38.3 – Upper Mogollon Transition

Elevations range from 5,100 to 7,000 feet and precipitation averages 20 to 27 inches per year. Vegetation includes Gambel oak, Arizona white oak, Emory oak, pinyon, alligator juniper, one-seed juniper, Arizona cypress, ponderosa pine, shrubby buckwheat, sacahuista, skunkbush sumac, Wright silktassle, blue grama, sideoats grama, muttongrass, western wheatgrass, and bottlebrush squirreltail. The soil temperature regime is mesic and the soil moisture regime is typic ustic. This MLRA occurs within the Transition Zone Physiographic Province and is characterized by canyons and structural troughs or valleys. Igneous, metamorphic, and sedimentary rock classes occur on rough mountainous terrain in association with less extensive sediment filled valleys exhibiting little integrated drainage.

Ecological site concept

Soils on the Sandstone Hills ecological site are shallow to sandstone and have an overstory of pine mixed with oak.

Table 1. Dominant plant species

Tree	(1) Pinus edulis (2) Pinus monophylla var. fallax
Shrub	Not specified
Herbaceous	(1) Bouteloua (2) Hesperostipa

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Physiographic features

Sideslopes of hills and mountains.

Table 2. Representative physiographic features

Elevation	5100 – 7000 ft

Climatic features

Precipitation in this common resource area averages 20 to 25 inches annually. Precipitation is lower and temperatures are cooler in the eastern part of the MLRA. The winter-summer rainfall ratio ranges from about 60/40% in the western part of the area to 45/55% in the eastern part. Summer rains fall July through September; and are from high-intensity convective thunderstorms. This moisture originates primarily from the Gulf of Mexico, but can come from the remnants of Pacific hurricanes in September. Winter moisture is frontal, originates in the north Pacific, and falls as rain or snow in widespread storms of low intensity and long duration. Snowfall ranges from 11 to 22 inches per year and can occur from November through April. May and June are the driest months of the year. Humidity is generally low all year.
Average annual air temperatures range from 45 to 57 degrees F (mesic temperature regime). Daytime temps in the summer are commonly in the mid 80's in the eastern portion of the MLRA and the low to mid 90's in the western portion. Freezing temperatures are common from October through April. The actual precipitation, available moisture and temperature varies, depending on, region, elevation, rain shadow effect and aspect.

Table 3 Representative climatic features

Frost-free period (average)	170 days
Freeze-free period (average)	190 days
Precipitation total (average)	30 in

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Figure 2. Monthly precipitation range

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Figure 3. Monthly average minimum and maximum temperature

Ecological dynamics

The plant communities found on an ecological site are naturally variable. Composition and production will vary with yearly conditions, location, aspect, and the natural variability of the soils. The historical climax plant community represents the natural potential plant communities found on relict or relatively undisturbed sites. Other plant communities described here represent plant communities that are known to occur when the site is disturbed by factors such as grazing, fire, or drought.

Production data provided in this site description is standardized to air-dry weight at the end of the summer growing season. The plant communities described in this site description are based on near normal rainfall years.

NRCS uses a Similarity Index to compare existing plant communities to the plant communities described here. Similarity Index is determined by comparing the production and composition of a plant community to the production and composition of a plant community described in this site description. To determine Similarity Index, compare the production (air-dry weight) of each species to that shown in the plant community description. For each species, count no more than the maximum amount shown for the species, and for each group, count no more than the maximum shown for the group. Divide the resulting total by the total normal year production shown in the plant community description. If rainfall has been significantly above or below normal, use the total production shown for above or below normal years. If field data is not collected at the end of the summer growing season, then the field data must be corrected to the end of the year production before comparing it to the site description. The growth curve can be used as a guide for estimating production at the end of the summer growing season.

State and transition model

More interactive model formats are also available. View Interactive Models
Click on state and transition labels to scroll to the respective text

Ecosystem states

1. Ponderosa Pine-Oak

2. Scrub Oak

State 1
Ponderosa Pine-Oak

Ponderosa pine overstory and oak understory

State 2
Scrub Oak

Scrub Oak/Chaparral

Transition T 1
State 1 to 2

Ponderosa pines are eliminated due to a crown burning fire and/or bark beetle. There is a possibility that over time the site will transition from an oak dominant back to a pine dominant site but that transition must be studied further.

Additional community tables

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:

Download reference sheet

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