FUNDAMENTALS OF GEOMORPHOLOGY Fundamentals of Geomorphology is an engaging and comprehensive introduction to geomorphology, and explores the world’s landforms from a broad systems perspective with an emphasis on change. The rich variety of landforms found on the Earth’s surface are described and discussed, paying attention to the roles of geomorphic processes and historical events in understanding their development and to how particular geomorphic processes affect, and are affected by, humans. Beginning with a consideration of the nature of geomorphology and the quest of process and historical geomorphologists (both of whose views are presented in the book), the author looks at the geomorphic system, moving on to discuss: • Structure: landforms resulting from, or influenced by, the endogenic agencies of tectonic and volcanic processes, geological structures, and rock types. • Process and form: landforms fashioned by the exogenic agencies of weathering, running water, flowing ice and meltwater, ground ice and frost, the wind and the sea. • History: Earth surface history, giving a discussion of the origin of old plains; relict, exhumed, and stagnant landscape features; cycles of landscape change; the work of rivers, wind, and the sea in the past and the evolutionary aspects of landscape change. Fundamentals of Geomorphology provides a stimulating and innovative perspective on the key topics and debates within the field of geomorphology. Written in an accessible and lively manner, it includes guides to further reading, chapter summaries, and an extensive glossary of key terms. The book is also illustrated throughout with over 200 informative diagrams and attractive photographs, including a colour plate section. Richard John Huggett is Reader in Geography at the University of Manchester. ROUTLEDGE FUNDAMENTALS OF PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY SERIES Series Editor: John Gerrard This new series of focused, introductory textbooks presents comprehensive, up-to-date introductions to the fundamental concepts, natural processes and human/environmental impacts within each of the core physical geography sub-disciplines. Uniformly designed, each volume contains student-friendly features: plentiful illustrations, boxed case studies, key concepts and summaries, further reading guides and a glossary. Already published: Fundamentals of Biogeography Richard John Huggett Fundamentals of Soils John Gerrard Fundamentals of Hydrology Tim Davie Fundamentals of Geomorphology Richard John Huggett FUNDAMENTALS OF GEOMORPHOLOGY Richard John Huggett Routledge Fundamentals of Physical Geography London and New York First published 2003 by Routledge 11 New Fetter Lane, London EC4P 4EE Simultaneously published in the USA and Canada by Routledge 29 West 35th Street, New York, NY 10001 Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group This edition published in the Taylor & Francis e-Library, 2005. “To purchase your own copy of this or any of Taylor & Francis or Routledge’s collection of thousands of eBooks please go to www.eBookstore.tandf.co.uk.” © 2003 Richard John Huggett All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers. British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data Huggett, Richard J. Fundamentals of geomorphology / Richard John Huggett. p. cm. – (Routledge fundamentals of physical geography) Includes bibliographical references and index. 1. Geomorphology. I. Title. II. Routledge fundamentals of physical geography series. GB401.5 .H845 2002 551.41–dc21 2002075133 ISBN 0-203-47063-X Master e-book ISBN ISBN 0-203-77887-1 (Adobe eReader Format) ISBN 0–415–24145–6 (hbk) ISBN 0–415–24146–4 (pbk) for my family CONTENTS Series editor’s preface ix Author’s preface xi Acknowledgements xiii PART I INTRODUCING LANDFORMS AND LANDSCAPES 1 1 WHAT IS GEOMORPHOLOGY? 3 2 THE GEOMORPHIC SYSTEM 35 PART II STRUCTURE 65 3 TECTONIC AND STRUCTURAL LANDFORMS I 67 4 TECTONIC AND STRUCTURAL LANDFORMS II 92 PART III PROCESS AND FORM 111 5 WEATHERING AND RELATED LANDFORMS 113 6 KARST LANDSCAPES 132 7 FLUVIAL LANDSCAPES 171 8 GLACIAL AND GLACIOFLUVIAL LANDSCAPES 209 viii CONTENTS 9 PERIGLACIAL LANDSCAPES 236 10 AEOLIAN LANDSCAPES 253 11 COASTAL LANDSCAPES 277 PART IV HISTORY 311 12 ANCIENT LANDSCAPES AND THEIR IMPLICATIONS 313 Appendix 343 Glossary 344 References 353 Index 375 SERIES EDITOR’S PREFACE We are presently living in a time of unparalleled change and when concern for the environment has never been greater. Global warming and climate change, possible rising sea levels, deforestation, desertification, and widespread soil erosion are just some of the issues of current concern. Although it is the role of human activity in such issues that is of most concern, this activity affects the operation of the natural processes that occur within the physical environment. Most of these processes and their effects are taught and researched within the academic discipline of physical geography. A knowledge and understanding of physical geography, and all it entails, is vitally important. It is the aim of this Fundamentals of Physical Geography Series to provide, in five volumes, the fundamental nature of the physical processes that act on or just above the surface of the Earth. The volumes in the series are Climatology, Geomorphology, Biogeography, Hydrology, and Soils. The topics are treated in sufficient breadth and depth to provide the coverage expected in a Fundamentals series. Each volume leads into the topic by outlining the approach adopted. This is important because there may be several ways of approaching individual topics. Although each volume is complete in itself, there are many explicit and implicit references to the topics covered in the other volumes. Thus, the five volumes together provide a comprehensive insight into the totality that is physical geography. The flexibility provided by separate volumes has been designed to meet the demand created by the variety of courses currently operating in higher education institutions. The advent of modular courses has meant that physical geography is now rarely taught, in its entirety, in an ‘all-embracing’ course but is generally split into its main components. This is also the case with many Advanced Level syllabuses. Thus students and teachers are being frustrated increasingly by lack of suitable books and are having to recommend texts of which only a small part might be relevant to their needs. Such texts also tend to lack the detail required. It is the aim of this series to provide individual volumes of sufficient breadth and depth to fulfil new demands. The volumes should also be of use to teachers of sixth forms, where modular syllabuses are also becoming common. Each volume has been written by higher education teachers with a wealth of experience in all aspects of the topics they cover and a proven ability in presenting information in a lively and interesting way. Each volume provides a comprehensive coverage of the subject matter using clear text divided into easily x SERIES EDITOR’S PREFACE accessible sections and subsections. Tables, figures, and photographs are used where appropriate as well as boxed case studies and summary notes. References to important previous studies and results are included but are used sparingly to avoid overloading the text. Suggestions for further reading are also provided. The main target readership is introductory-level undergraduate students of physical geography or environmental science, but there will be much of interest to students from other disciplines and it is also hoped that sixth- form teachers will be able to use the information that is provided in each volume. John Gerrard AUTHOR’S PREFACE Geomorphology has always been a favourite subject of mine. For the first twelve years of my life I lived in North London, and I recall playing by urban rivers and in disused quarries. During the cricket season, Saturday and Sunday afternoons would be spent exploring the landscape around the grounds where my father was playing cricket. H. W. (‘Masher’) Martin, the head of geography and geology at Hertford Grammar School, whose ‘digressions’ during classes were tremendously educational, aroused my first formal interest in landforms. The sixth-form field-trips to the Forest of Dean and the Lake District were unforgettable. While at University College London, I was lucky enough to come under the tutelage of Eric H. Brown, Claudio Vita-Finzi, Andrew Warren, and Ron Cooke, to whom I am indebted for a remarkable six years as an undergraduate and postgraduate. Since arriving at Manchester, I have taught several courses with large geomorphological components but have seen myself very much as a physical geographer with a dislike of disciplinary boundaries and the fashion for overspecialization. Nonetheless, I thought that writing a new, student-friendly geomorphological text would pose an interesting challenge and, with Fundamentals of Biogeography, make a useful accompaniment to my more academic works. In writing Fundamentals of Geomorphology, I have tried to combine process geomorphology, which has dominated the subject for the last several decades, with the less fashionable but fast-resurging historical geomorphology. Few would