depositional coastal landforms

What are some of the landforms that may be formed by deposition?

• spits

• bars

• sand dunes

what is a spit?

• a narrow, elongated stretch of beach material extending into the sea, connected to the mainland at only one end

How are spits formed?

• waves approach the shoreline at an angle following the prevailing wind

• longshore drift transports sand and shingle and deposits it in the sea

How are recurved ends formed and why?

• secondary wind (change in wind direction) causes the deposited material to shift more towards inland and form a recurved end (hook)

What is behind the recurved end?

• behind the recurved end is an area which is sheltered from the waves so material accumulates and plants grow

What can the area behind the recurved end become?

• overtime the sheltered area can become salt marsh or mud flat

What is a bar?

• a linear ridge of sand or shingle that extends across a bay, connecting two headlands and forming a barrier between the open sea and a lagoon

How is a bar formed?

• spit builds up across a bay from longshore driftWh

What is the area behind a bar?

• lagoon