FLUVIAL / RIVER LANDFORMS
Erosional Landforms
V-Shaped Valley
● Formed by vertical erosion in youthful river stage
● Steep slopes, narrow floor
● Weathering & mass wasting widen slopes
Canyon
● Deep, steep valley in plateau regions
● Dominant vertical erosion + uplift
● Wider top, narrow base
Gorge
● Very narrow, deep valley
● Often from waterfall retreat
● Almost vertical rock walls
Rapids
● Sudden gradient change → turbulent flow
● Irregular bedrock, hard & soft layers
● Erosional zone, white-water
Cataracts
● Series of rapids & small waterfalls
● Hard rock steps across river
● Hinder navigation (e.g., Nile)
Waterfalls
● River falls over hard → soft rock
● Undercutting → retreat leaves gorge
● Plunge pool formed at base
Plunge Pool
● Deep hollow at waterfall base
● Hydraulic action + abrasion
● Helps upstream retreat of waterfall
Potholes
● Circular holes drilled in river bed
● Swirling pebbles in eddies
● Upper course rocky channels
Spurs / Interlocking Spurs
● Zigzag ridges in young valleys
● River winds around resistant rocks
● Vertical erosion dominates
Meanders (erosional part)
● Outer bend = fast flow & undercutting
● Lateral erosion shapes S-bends
● Forms river cliff opposite slip-off
River Cliff (Cut Bank)
● Steep outer bend of meander
● High velocity & erosion
● Bank slumps & collapses
River Terraces
● Step-like former floodplains
● River incision due to rejuvenation
● Evidence of base-level change
Peneplain
● Nearly level low-relief surface
● Final stage of long denudation
● May uplift & re-erode again
Monadnocks
● Isolated resistant hills on plain
● Left after long weathering
● Residual relief feature
Depositional Landforms
Floodplain
● Wide flat valley floor near river
● Built by flood deposits
● Fertile soils & river migration
Braided Stream / Channel
● Many shifting shallow channels
● High sediment load + variable discharge
● Sand/gravel bars between channels
Levees
● Raised banks along river
● Built by flood deposition
● Coarse near channel, finer outward
Point Bar
● Inner bend deposit of meander
● Gently sloping bank
● Opposite to river cliff
Ox-Bow Lake
● Cut-off meander loop
● Crescent-shaped water body
● Later becomes swamp/meander scar
Delta
● Deposits at river-sea meeting
● Distributary network formation
● Fertile & low-lying landform
Alluvial Fans
● Fan-shaped deposit at foothills
● Sudden slope drop → deposition
● Coarse sediments
Alluvial Cones
● Steeper, smaller than fans
● Very coarse material
● Mountain foot deposition
Sandbanks
● Submerged sand ridges
● Form in channels/river mouth
● Navigation hazard
Sandbars
● Temporary sand islands in channel
● Form at low flow
● Move with floods
Slip-off Slope
● Gentle slope on inner meander
● Formed by deposition
● Opposite cut bank
GROUNDWATER / KARST LANDFORMS
Erosional
Lapis / Lapies
● Grooved limestone surface
● Solution weathering
● Sharp ridges & furrows
Sinkholes / Dolines
● Circular depression in limestone
● Solution or collapse origin
● Sudden or gradual formation
Swallow Hole / Sinkhole (Ponor)
● Stream disappears into ground
● Entry to underground cave system
● Karst drainage feature
Collapse Sinks
● Roof of cave collapses
● Steep, funnel depression
● Fast process in weak rock
Solution Pan
● Shallow solution hollow
● Formed by chemical dissolution
● Flat bedrock surface
Uvala
● Large merged dolines
● Irregular closed depression
● Intermediate scale between doline & polje
Jama
● Deep rocky pit in karst
● Vertical shaft opening
● Water & air circulation
Compound Sink
● Multiple dolines merged
● Complex sinkhole system
● Large irregular basin
Polje
● Very large flat floored depression
● Underground drainage
● Wet season → temporary lake
Sinking Creek
● Stream entering underground opening
● Start of subterranean flow
● Common in karst valley
Blind Valley
● Valley ending at swallow hole
● Stream disappears underground
● Downstream continuation unseen
Caves & Caverns
● Underground solution chambers
● Form along joints & bedding planes
● Enlarged by carbonation
Natural Bridge
● Rock arch in karst from cave roof collapse
● Connects two sides
● Residual erosion form
Grikes & Clints
● Grikes: deep cracks
● Clints: limestone blocks
● Solution along joints
Depositional
Travertine
● Calcium carbonate deposit from springs
● Layered, porous rock
● Forms terraces & barriers
Tufa
● Soft porous CaCO₃
● From slow evaporating springs
● Light spongy texture
Dripstones
● General term for cave deposits
● Precipitated from dripping water
● Stalactites & stalagmites included
Stalactites
● Hang from cave roof
● Icicle-like CaCO₃ formations
● “Stalactite — ceiling”
Stalagmites
● Rise from cave floor
● Water drip deposits
● “Stalagmite — ground”
Pillars
● Stalactite + stalagmite joined
● Column inside cave
● Continuous deposition
Flowstones
● Sheet-like cave deposits
● Formed by flowing mineral water
● Smooth layered appearance
Drapes / Curtains
● Wavy deposits on cave walls
● Thin hanging sheets
● Semi-transparent calcite
Helictites
● Twisted dripstone forms
● Grow sideways due to capillary forces
● Irregular & fragile
Heligmites
● Twisted stalagmites
● Irregular rising forms
● Rare karst feature
Globulites
● Small rounded cave deposits
● From dripping mineral water
● Bead-like calcite forms
AEOLIAN / WIND LANDFORMS
Erosional
Deflation Basin
● Hollow formed by wind removal
● Loose particles blown away
● Desert blowouts
Mushroom / Pedestal Rock
● Narrow base, wide top
● Sand-blast erosion
● Wind abrasion near ground
Inselberg
● Isolated hard rock hill in desert
● Residual erosion feature
● Surrounded by plains
Demoiselles
● Rock pillars with protective cap rock
● Wind removes softer rock
● Column remains
Zeugen
● Long ridges with hard top layer
● Undercut by abrasion
● Softer lower layer removed
Yardangs
● Streamlined ridges
● Wind carved along direction
● Sharp windward, tapered leeward
Cockscomb
● Saw-tooth ridges
● Alternate hard & soft layers
● Wind abrasion
Dreikanter
● Three-faced wind-polished stones
● Abraded by shifting wind
● Desert pavement
Stone Lattice
● Network pattern on rock
● Honeycomb weathering
● Wind + salt erosion
Badland
● Rugged dissected landscape
● Soft rock erosion + sparse vegetation
● Gullies, ridges, towers
Wind Bridge
● Rock arch by wind erosion
● Undercutting → gap
● Weak strata blown out
Mesa & Butte
● Flat-topped plateau remains
● Mesa > Butte (size)
● Differential erosion
Ventifacts
● Wind-polished stones
● Faceted surfaces
● Sand-blast shaping
Chebka / Wadis
● Dry stream channels in desert
● Episodic flash floods
● Erosional but appear dry
Depositional
Ripple Marks
● Wind-formed sand ripples
● Small scale dunes
● Indicate wind direction
Sand Dunes
● Hills of sand shaped by wind
● Migration with wind direction
● Windward gentle, leeward steep
Nebkhas
● Sand mounds around vegetation
● Bushes trap sand
● Local dune mounds
Seif Dunes
● Long narrow ridges
● Parallel to wind direction
● Sharp crest lines
Hamada
● Bare rocky desert surface
● Deflation removes fines
● Desert pavement
Barchans
● Crescent dunes, horns downwind
● Constant wind & limited sand
● Fast moving dunes
Loess
● Fine silt wind deposit
● Fertile, porous, vertical cliffs
● Held by vegetation
Bajada
● Coalesced alluvial fans
● Forms sloping piedmont
● Mountain foot deposition
Playa
● Dry desert lakebed
● Evaporation basin
● Salt & clay deposits
GLACIAL LANDFORMS
Erosional
U-Shaped Valley
● Broad valley with flat floor
● Glacial abrasion & plucking
● Steep straight walls
Hanging Valley
● Tributary glacial valley
● Joins main valley high
● Waterfalls form
Cirque
● Bowl-shaped hollow
● Snow accumulation zone
● Head of glacier
Aretes
● Sharp ridge between cirques
● Glacial headward erosion
● Knife-edge ridge
Horns
● Pyramid peak from multiple cirques
● Eg. Matterhorn
● Sharp summit
Nunataks
● Peaks projecting above ice
● Surrounded by glacier
● Isolated mountaintops
Crag & Tail
● Hard rock front, softer tail behind
● Wind/plucking shapes
● Eg. Edinburgh Castle rock
Roche Moutonnée
● Smooth stoss, rough lee side
● Abrasion + plucking
● Asymmetric rock knob
Trough Lakes
● Lakes in glacial valleys
● Occupy U-shaped floors
● Dammed by moraines/rock
Tarn
● Small lake in cirque
● After glacier melt
● Steep amphitheater walls
Fiords
● Glacial valley drowned by sea
● Deep narrow inlets
● Steep cliff sides
Bergschrund
● Crevasse at glacier head
● Ice pulls away from headwall
● Accumulation zone boundary
Glacial Grooves
● Deep scratches on bedrock
● Made by rock-laden ice
● Shows glacier direction
Crevasses
● Deep cracks in glacier
● Caused by movement stress
● Form in brittle ice zones
Depositional
Moraines
● Till deposits by glacier
● Terminal, lateral, medial types
● Unsorted material
Drumlins
● Smooth elongated hills
● Ice-shaped till mound
● Steep stoss, gentle lee
Eskers
● Long sinuous sand/gravel ridge
● Subglacial meltwater stream deposit
● Sorted sediments
Kames
● Irregular mounds of sand & gravel
● Formed by meltwater deposition
● Ice-contact deposits
Kettles / Mummocks
● Depressions from buried ice melt
● Often form lakes (kettle lakes)
● Irregular depressions
Outwash Plain
● Meltwater-sorted sediments
● Stratified sands & gravels
● Beyond terminal moraine
Erratics
● Large foreign boulders
● Transported by glacier
● Different from local rock