Appendix 5
Approximate correlations between the Australian Soil Classification Order and other soil classifications
| Australian Soil Classification | Great Soil Group Stace et al. (1968) |
Factual Key Northcote (1979) |
Soil Taxonomy Soil Survey Staff (2014) |
World Reference Base 2015 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Anthroposols | No equivalent | No equivalent | No equivalent or HAHT soils1 | Anthrosols, Technosols |
| Arenosols | Siliceous sands, some earthy sands, calcareous sands, alluvial soils | Many Uc soils | Some Entisols | Arenosols, Regosols |
| Calcarosols | Solonised brown soils, grey-brown and red calcareous soils | Gc1, Gc2, Um1, Um5 soils | Aridisols, Alfisols | Calcisols |
| Chromosols | Non-calcic brown soils, some red-brown earths and a range of podzolic soils | Many forms of duplex (D) soils | Alfisols, some Aridisols | Abruptic Luvisols/Lixisols |
| Dermosols | Prairie soils, chocolate soils, some red and yellow podzolic soils | Wide range of Gn3 soils, some Um4 | Mollisols, Alfisols, Ultisols | Wide range of Reference Soil Groups including Chernozems, Phaeozems, Luvisols and Lixisols |
| Ferrosols | Krasnozems, euchrozems, chocolate soils | Gn3, Gn4, Uf5, Uf6 soils | Oxisols, Alfisols | Nitisols, Lixisols, some Ferralsols |
| Hydrosols | Humic gleys, gleyed podzolic soils, solonchaks and some alluvial soils | Wide range of classes, Dg and some Uf6 soils probably most common | Aquasols2, Ultisols, Inceptisols, salic Aridisols, Histosols | Gleysols, Stagnosols, Stagnic or Gleyic Vertisols/Fluvisols, Solonchaks |
| Kandosols | Red, yellow and grey earths, calcareous red earths | Gn2, Um5 soils | Alfisols, Ultisols, Aridisols | Ferralsols, Luvisols, Lixisols |
| Kurosols | Many podzolic soils and soloths | Many strongly acid duplex soils | Ultisols, Alfisols | Abruptic Acrisols/Lixisols/Alisols |
| Organosols | Neutral to alkaline, and acid peats | Organic (O) soils | Histosols | Histosols |
| Podosols | Podzols, humus podzols, peaty podsols | Many Uc2, some Uc3, Uc4 soils | Spodosols, some Entisols | Podzols |
| Rudosols | Lithosols, alluvial soils, some solonchaks | Uc1, Um1, Uf1, soils | Entisols, salic Aridisols | Fluvisols, Leptosols, Arenosols, Solonchaks |
| Sodosols | Solodized solonetz and solodic soils, some soloths and red-brown earths, desert loams | Many duplex (D) soils | Alfisols, Aridisols | Solonetz, Abruptic Luvisols, Planosols |
| Tenosols | Lithosols, some siliceous and earthy sands, alpine humus soils and some alluvial soils | Many Uc and Um soils | Inceptisols, Aridisols, Entisols | Cambisols, Leptosols, Plinthosols |
| Vertosols | Black earths, grey, brown and red clays | Ug5 soils | Vertisols | Vertisols |
1 Human-Altered and Human-Transported soils
2 Proposed for the 13th Approximation
This table is intended only to give an idea of soils which approximately correspond to the Orders of the scheme. It is not meant to be used as an accurate translation between the various classification schemes. In many cases only major nearest equivalents can be given as differentiating criteria often differ between the four systems.