Quartz Sandstone Peak Forest Landforms of Zhangjiajie Geopark, Northwest Hunan Province, China: Pattern, Constraints and Comparison
Total Page：16
File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb
Environ Earth Sci (2012) 65:1877–1894 DOI 10.1007/s12665-011-1170-1 ORIGINAL ARTICLE Quartz sandstone peak forest landforms of Zhangjiajie Geopark, northwest Hunan Province, China: pattern, constraints and comparison Guifang Yang • Mingzhong Tian • Xujiao Zhang • Zhenghong Chen • Robert A. L. Wray • Zhiliang Ge • Yamin Ping • Zhiyun Ni • Zhen Yang Received: 13 July 2010 / Accepted: 24 June 2011 / Published online: 10 July 2011 Ó Springer-Verlag 2011 Abstract The Zhangjiajie Sandstone Peak Forest Geo- forests and peak pillars to remnant peaks in the lower park in northwest Hunan Province, China, is a compre- valley bottoms. The form and distribution of the Zhang- hensive geopark containing many spectacular quartz jiajie sandstone landforms are primarily dominated by the sandstone landforms, limestone karst landscapes and vari- geological setting, particularly the presence of brittle ous other important geoheritage resources. It is listed as a structures (fractures and joint sets) trending NNW, ENE UNESCO World Geopark and is also part of the World and NE. Triggered by the episodic tectonic movements, Heritage Wulingyuan Scenic and Historic Interest Area for major streams and escarpments frequently occur along its important landscape features. Many of the sandstone these structural directions, while some of the peak walls, landforms, particularly the vast number of thin pillars or peak clusters and peak forests have their longer elongated spires, are very unusual and serve as the core landscapes of axes corresponding to NE or NNW directions, with an the geopark. But Zhangjiajie displays a diverse range of increased density of peak forms at the intersection of these landform types, exhibiting spectacular patterns and regular fractures and joints. The geometry of the diverse sandstone distributions. In this paper, the geomorphic traits, distri- landforms is also influenced to a certain degree by the bution pattern and constraints of the sandstone landforms climatic, water system distribution, lithologic properties, of the Zhangjiajie Geopark are examined. Our study indi- biological process, meteorological features and denudation cates that in the outcropping areas, the sandstones display processes. The suite of quartz sandstone landforms in four distinctive levels from 300 to 1,000 m above sea level, Zhangjiajie can be compared with other sandstone land- and these extend clearly from the highest sandstone plateau scapes regionally, and our interpretation of the sandstone platform to the center of the valleys. The high sandstone peak forest formation processes offers a significant con- platforms developed close to a flat high-level erosional tribution to the study of topographic features and the surface, and subsequent erosion into this plateau has geomorphic evolution of sandstone landscapes. resulted in successively lower levels of landforms that transition gradually from peak walls, peak clusters, peak Keywords Sandstone landform Á Topographic diversity Á Tectonic constraints Á Climatic variation G. Yang (&) Á M. Tian Á X. Zhang Á Z. Ge Á Y. Ping Á Z. Ni Á Z. Yang School of Earth Sciences and Resources, Introduction China University of Geosciences, Beijing 100083, China e-mail: [email protected] Quartz arenites have been described as practically immune Z. Chen to chemical weathering (Tricart 1972) and form the back- Development Research Centre, China Meteorological drop to some of the world’s most spectacular scenery Administration, Beijing 100081, China (Wray 1997a; Young et al. 2009). In recent decades, interest in quartz sandstone landforms worldwide has dis- R. A. L. Wray UOW College and School of Earth and Environmental Sciences, tinctly increased (e.g., White et al. 1966; Chalcraft and Pye University of Wollongong, Wollongong 2522, Australia 1984; Young 1986a, b, 1988; George 1989; Bricen˜o and 123 1878 Environ Earth Sci (2012) 65:1877–1894 Schubert 1990; Wray 1995, 1997a, b; McNally and Previous works on Zhangjiajie have primarily focused McQueen 2000; Netoff and Shroba 2001; Turkington on the physical properties and esthetic features of the and Paradise 2005; Turkington et al. 2005; de Melo and sandstones, with particular interest in the small-scale ana- Giannini 2007; Yang et al. 2009; Young et al. 2009; Siedel logs of sandstone megapillars and cliffs. However, detailed et al. 2010), with particular focus on the susceptibility of knowledge needed to properly model the evolution process quartz sandstones to weathering and erosion in a number of of such a distinct sandstone landscape is still poor, par- tropical, subtropical and even some arid or semiarid areas. ticularly compared with our understanding of widespread Many of these sandstones exhibit an almost identical size, sandstone landscapes elsewhere (Wray 1997a; Young et al. form and genetic formative process to those of their car- 2009). bonate relatives (Wray 1995, 1997a, b; Doerr 1999; Doerr Despite a growing consensus that the development of and Wray 2004; de Melo and Giannini 2007; Young et al. the Zhangjiajie sandstone landforms can be attributed to 2009). Among these, the quartz sandstone peak forest several factors including intermittent tectonic uplift, river landforms in Zhangjiajie, in northwest Hunan Province of incision, climatic variation and change of base level (Wu China, are becoming increasingly difficult to ignore due to and Zhang 2002; Hunan Province State Land and their spectacular geomorphology and unusual physicogeo- Resources Department 2003; Zhou et al. 2004; Tang et al. graphical features. However, little worldwide attention has 2005; Huang et al. 2006), the formation mechanisms and yet been given to the systematic study of these striking evolutionary processes at Zhangjiajie require a more landforms and the processes responsible. appropriate and universally accepted interpretation (Deng The extensive quartz sandstone landforms in the 1989; Tang et al. 2005). However, the absence of detailed Zhangjiajie Sandstone Peak Forest Geopark (also known geological records has largely hampered the understanding as the Zhangjiajie World Geopark) occur across an area of the development pattern and morphotectonic genesis of of 86 km2 in Upper and Middle Devonian sedimentary the Zhangjiajie region (Zhou et al. 2004; Tang et al. 2005; units. Many of these sandstone landforms bear a striking Yang et al. 2009). visual resemblance to the limestone peak forest karst In 2008 and 2009, two comprehensive field studies were elsewhere in China. At Zhangjiajie, the geomorphic undertaken as part of the analysis of geological heritage assemblage of sandstone peak forest landforms constitutes protection of the Zhangjiajie Sandstone Peak Forest Geo- a rare natural museum and a world-class tourist attraction park. During these field surveys, detailed observations of (Deng 1989; Chen 1993). Notably, the large number of various sandstone topographies were performed in an sandstone pillars and cliffs are characterized by great attempt to characterize the exceptional sandstone peak height differences, large height-to-width ratios and high forest landforms of this region, with specific references to peak densities, displaying a wide variety of topographic their development characteristics, distribution patterns and patterns. In 1992, the spectacular landforms of the formation mechanism. These region-wide analyses are Zhangjiajie sandstone area (Hunan Geo-environmental among the first in this area to advance beyond simple Monitoring Center 1988) were inscribed on the UNESCO descriptions of topographic classification in an attempt to World Heritage List as part of the Wulingyuan Scenic and examine the possible processes responsible for the land- Historic Interest Area for its important scientific value, form evolution of the region. These works also provide the superlative natural phenomena, exceptional natural beauty key to improving the area’s scientific management of and esthetic importance (UNESCO 2010). In 2004, the sustainable tourism and scientific geo-heritage protection. sandstone areas of Zhangjiajie were listed as a UNESCO global geopark. Since the early 1980s when the sandstone peak forest Characteristics of the study area landform was named by Guo (1982), it has received increasingly significant scenic and scientific attention in The Zhangjiajie Sandstone Peak Forest Geopark covers a China (Zhai and Xiong 1988; Deng 1989; Chen and Liu total area of approximately 398 km2 (Fig. 1) and is situ- 1991; Chen 1993; Su and Li 1993; Zhou et al. 2004). Many ated near the junction of the southwest Yunnan-Guizhou notable studies have been made of this impressive sand- Plateau and the Wuling Mountains in China’s northwest stone landscape in terms of geomorphic character and Hunan Province (29°1301800–29°2702700N, 110°1800000– geological genesis (Liu 1988; Deng 1989; Chen 1993; 110°4101500E). The mean elevations primarily range from Tang et al. 2005), and recently the question of a relation- valley bottoms at 200–300 m above sea level (a.s.l.) to ship between lithologic traits and sandstone landform for- mountain peaks at 1,300 m a.s.l. The present day climate mation has been revisited (Zhou et al. 2004; Huang et al. is relatively temperate, predominately subtropical humid 2006). However, very little detailed analysis of this monsoon, with an annual average temperature of 16°C and remarkable area has been published in English. 1,200–1,600 mm precipitation. 123 Environ Earth Sci (2012) 65:1877–1894 1879 Fig. 1 a Location of the Hunan Province in relation to the middle geographical