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Soil Information for All Uses <br />Ecological Site Assessment <br />Individual soil map unit components can be correlated to a particular ecological site. <br />The Ecological Site Assessment section includes ecological site descriptions, plant <br />growth curves, state and transition models, and selected National Plants database <br />information. <br />All Ecological Sites - Rangeland <br />An "ecological site" is the product of all the environmental factors responsible for its <br />development. It has characteristic soils that have developed over time; a characteristic <br />hydrology, particularly infiltration and runoff, that has developed over time; and a <br />characteristic plant community (kind and amount of vegetation). The vegetation, soils, <br />and hydrology are all interrelated. Each is influenced by the others and influences the <br />development of the others. For example, the hydrology of the site is influenced by <br />development of the soil and plant community. The plant community on an ecological <br />site is typified by an association of species that differs from that of other ecological <br />sites in the kind and/or proportion of species or in total production. <br />An ecological site name provides a general description of a particular ecological site. <br />For example, "Loamy Upland" is the name of a rangeland ecological site. An <br />"ecological site ID" is the symbol assigned to a particular ecological site. <br />The map identifies the dominant ecological site for each map unit, aggregated by <br />dominant condition. Other ecological sites may occur within each map unit. Each map <br />unit typically consists of one or more components (soils and/or miscellaneous areas). <br />Each soil component is associated with an ecological site. Miscellaneous areas, such <br />as rock outcrop, sand dunes, and badlands, have little or no soil material and support <br />little or no vegetation and therefore are not linked to an ecological site. The table below <br />the map lists all of the ecological sites for each map unit component in your area of <br />interest. <br />14