Integrative Natural History of Fairy Stone State Park, Part 1: An Essay in Ocher | Virginia, USA
(Updated on 1 March 2025)
First of all, it must be mentioned that this park property draws its name and fame from its "fairy stones"—twinned staurolite crystals that can be found on its grounds. The only example I came across, however, was located in the park store. And of course it was my manifest professional responsibility to purchase it.
Fortunately, the site also has many other attractions for an observant naturalist. This, believe it or not, is one of them: a small patch of bare bank in the park's woodland.
What's revealed here is one of our planets great soil orders, which, if one uses the USDA classification system, is known as an Ultisol.
This strange name, a portmanteau term combining "ultimate" and "soil," refers to the old and nutrient-poor type that has evolved to its end state, more or less. Ultisols are a very common sight throughout the American Southeast. This region lies beyond the soil-rejuvenating effects of the Pleistocene epoch's continental ice sheets.
The striking ocher tint shown in this image signals the preponderance of iron-oxide minerals that have built up over the passage of geologic time. And the clayey texture revealed by my rock-hammer scrapings is due to its high kaolinite content.
Integrative Natural History of Fairy Stone State Park, Part 1: An Essay in Ocher | Virginia, USA
(Updated on 1 March 2025)
First of all, it must be mentioned that this park property draws its name and fame from its "fairy stones"—twinned staurolite crystals that can be found on its grounds. The only example I came across, however, was located in the park store. And of course it was my manifest professional responsibility to purchase it.
Fortunately, the site also has many other attractions for an observant naturalist. This, believe it or not, is one of them: a small patch of bare bank in the park's woodland.
What's revealed here is one of our planets great soil orders, which, if one uses the USDA classification system, is known as an Ultisol.
This strange name, a portmanteau term combining "ultimate" and "soil," refers to the old and nutrient-poor type that has evolved to its end state, more or less. Ultisols are a very common sight throughout the American Southeast. This region lies beyond the soil-rejuvenating effects of the Pleistocene epoch's continental ice sheets.
The striking ocher tint shown in this image signals the preponderance of iron-oxide minerals that have built up over the passage of geologic time. And the clayey texture revealed by my rock-hammer scrapings is due to its high kaolinite content.