landforms of erosion and beach microfeatures

Concordant coastlines

Parallel to the shore

Discordant coastlines

Perpendicular to the shore

Headlands and bays

• form on discordant coastlines

• Weaker rock is eroded

• Wave refraction

Example of headlands and bays

Flamborough head in Scarborough

Arches stacks and stumps

• hydraulic action and destructive waves

• Cracks within a cliff which are further eroded back to form a cave

• Back wall eroded a way to form an arch

• Arch collapses due to biological weathering and sub aerial processes

• Creates a stack

• Erosion at base of stack causes collapse which creates a stump

Example of arch

Durdle door

Example of stacks and stumps

Old harry and wives

Example of cove

Lulworth cove

Geo

An inlet, a gully or a long narrow steep sided cleft formed by erosion in a coastal cliff

Example of a geo

Orkney and Shetland islands in north east Scotland

Wave cut platforms

• hydraulic action and abrasion causes a notch in the cliff which continues to grow

• The cliff above collapses leaving a steep drop - due to gravity and weathering

• Wave cut platform is left

Blowhole

• water erodes into a cliff causing a tunnel

• Impact of air and water forced into the cave will allow vertical shafts upwards

• At certain states of tide or due to wind directions, air and water will be forced through the blow hole

Runnels

• Dips in a beach profile

Ridges

• raised points in a beach profile

Storm beach

• due to large spring/ high tides which cause destructive waves, some material is thrown up to the back of the beach

• It accumulates there if not pulled back by swash

Berms

A horizontal or gently inclined area at the top of the beach which experiences infrequent wave action

Beach cusps

• occur where coarser material is absorbing wave swash