Soils of the - Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada

LIONS SOILS (LS)
Location and Extent : Lions soils occupy scattered, small areas at the upper elevations in the mountainous ,
northern part of the map area . About 160 ha of soil complexes dominated by Lions soils are mapped . The
complexes are mostly with Dennett, Hollyburn, and Sayres soils and with Talus and Rock Outcrop land types .
Topography and Elevation : The topography of Lions soils is very steeply to extremely sloping with slop e
gradients greater than 40 percent . The soils generally lie at elevations greater than 800 m above sea level .
Parent Material and Texture : Lions soils have developed from deep, moderately coarse to coarse -
textured, very stony and bouldery, colluvial deposits consisting mainly of stabilized talus and avalanche trac k
debris . Surface, subsurface and subsoil textures range from gravelly sandy loam to loam which is intersperse d
between the numerous boulders and stones . Coarse fragments generally occupy at least 80 percent of the soi l
volume .
Soil Moisture Characteristics : Lions soils are moderately well to well drained . They are rapidly perviou s
and have low water holding capacity and slow surface runoff . Telluric downslope seepage in the lower subsoil i s
usual, either flowing over bedrock, or less commonly, over glacial till .
General Soil Description : Lions soils usually have a 10 to 20 cm thick, mainly well-decomposed, matted ,
organic surface layer derived mostly from deciduous plant remains . The organic layer is underlain by about 1 0
to 30 cm of very dark gray to dark brown, friable, weakly structured, loamy material containing between 10 an d
30 percent organic matter. At least 50 percent of the soil volume is occupied by stones and boulders . This the n
grades to a loamy zone about 40 cm thick which is reddish-brown or yellowish-brown, friable, and extremel y
stony and bouldery which, in turn, gradually grades to loamy or sandy, gray to grayish-brown, very stony an d
bouldery material below about 80 cm . Soil reaction is extremely acid throughout . Soil classification is mostl y
Sombric Humo-Ferric Podzol although some areas of Orthic Sombric Brunisol also occur in areas which are
either only partially stabilized or have been stabilized for only a short time .
Commonly Associated Soils : Dennett, Hollyburn and Sayres soils and Rock Outcrop and Talus land type s
usually are closely associated with Lions soils . Hollyburn and Sayres soils differ from Lions soils by bein g
underlain by bedrock within 100 cm of the surface . They also lack the dark coloured, organic matter enriched ,
surface mineral soil layer. Dennett soils differ by being composed of 10 cm or more of organic material ove r
bedrock . Rock Outcrop land type differs by consisting of less than 10 cm of mineral or organic soil over bedroc k
or having exposed rock at the surface while Talus land type is composed of actively accumulating, colluvia l
materials .
Vegetation : The vegetation of Lions soils consists mainly of deciduous shrubs and herbs . It includes Sitk a
alder, willow, mountain ash, copper bush, hellebore, salmonberry, and ferns as well as some scattered mountai n
hemlock and yellow cedar, either as individuals or in groups . The growth is usually lush due to telluric subsoi l
seepage . Rooting depth is unrestricted to at least 100 cm although root distribution is severely limited by th e
high number of stones and boulders in the soil .
General Land Use Comments : (1) Extreme slopes and stoniness as well as potential instability preclud e
use of Lions soils for agriculture and urban uses . (2) Forest growth of coniferous species is generally poor . I f
logging or road construction is considered, extreme caution is required to prevent reactivating downslop e
movement . Additionally, snow avalanche hazard is very high .
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