Soil erosion measurements on small upland watersheds totaling 229 watershed-years show that most of the total erosion occurring over a long-term period comes from a few large storms. The five largest erosion-producing events from each of 9 watersheds (45 events out of more than 4000 rainfall events) during a 28-year period accounted for 66% of the total erosion. Although conservation management practices do not reduce the percentage of soil loss from a few large storms, the total erosion and the loss from the few large storms are diminished by erosion control practices.