Cambridge IGCSE Geography - Coastal Processes, Landforms, Ecosystems, and Management

Vocabulary practice flashcards covering coastal definitions, wave types, erosion and deposition features, ecosystem structures, and management strategies based on the IGCSE Geography transcript.

Shoreline

The boundary of the land defined by the high water mark on a low-lying coast or the base of a steeply sloping coast.

Tidal range

The difference in water height between low tide and high tide.

Swash

The movement of water up the beach after a wave crests and breaks.

Backwash

The return movement of water pulling back down the beach toward the sea.

Destructive waves

High-energy waves that erode the beach, characterized by a steep wave gradient, short wavelength, high wave height, high frequency of $10-12\,\text{per minute}$, and a strong, abrasive backwash.

Constructive waves

Low-energy beach-building waves characterized by a long wavelength, low wave height, low frequency of $6-8\,\text{per minute}$, shallow wave gradient, and a stronger swash that deposits material.

Attrition

A form of marine erosion where rocks and boulders carried by ocean waves crash into one another, gradually wearing down into smaller, rounded pebbles and sand grains.

Longshore drift

The main process of sediment transportation along a coast where swash carries material up the beach at an angle following the prevailing wind, and backwash moves material straight down at a $90^\circ$ angle due to gravity.

Berm

A distinct ridge formed at the top of a beach when large shingle is thrown above the usual high tide level during a storm.

Wave-cut notch

A knick-point undercut into the base of a cliff face around the high-water mark caused by wave erosion processes such as hydraulic action, abrasion, and corrosion.

Wave-cut platform

A flat, gently sloping rocky platform left behind at the base of a cliff as the unsupported cliff face collapses and retreats inland.

Discordant coastline

A coastline formed of alternating bands of resistant (hard) and less resistant (soft) rocks running perpendicular to oncoming waves.

Headland

A coastal feature composed of resistant rock (such as limestone) that protrudes out to sea, typically longer than it is wide and flanked by steep cliffs.

Bay

A wide, roughly semi-circular coastal inlet created where bands of less resistant rock (such as clay) erode more rapidly than surrounding hard rocks.

Wave refraction

The bending of wave crests as they reach shallow water near the shoreline, which concentrates wave energy and erosion onto the sides of headlands.

Stack

An isolated vertical column of rock standing in the ocean, left behind after the roof of a sea arch collapses due to sub-aerial weathering and wave erosion.

Stump

A low pillar of rock formed when a stack is undercut at its base by wave action and sub-aerial weathering until it collapses.

Spit

An extended accumulation of sand or shingle projecting from the mainland out into the sea or across an estuary, created by longshore drift at a bend in the coastline.

Bar

A continuous ridge of sand or shingle formed when a spit grows directly across a bay, connecting two headlands.

Lagoon

A shallow body of seawater partially or completely separated from the open sea by a bar, tombolo, or atoll.

Tombolo

A depositional coastal feature formed when a spit or sand bar grows outwards to connect an offshore island to the mainland.

Barrier island

An elongated sand island running parallel to the mainland coast, open to the sea at one or both ends.

Halophytes

Salt-tolerant plant species that act as pioneer colonisers on mud flats and salt marshes in intertidal coastal areas.

Zooxanthellae

Microscopic photosynthetic algae living symbiotically inside coral polyp tissue, providing corals with oxygen and food while receiving nutrients and shelter.

Fringing reef

A low, narrow band of coral reef that grows directly along or close to the coast of a landmass, covered by shallow lagoons at high tide.

Barrier reef

A extensive coral reef running parallel to a coast but separated from it by a wide, deep lagoon.

Atoll

A circular or ring-shaped coral reef rim that completely or partially encircles a deep central lagoon, connected to the ocean via channels.

Salt marsh

A coastal intertidal ecosystem consisting of nonwoody, salt-tolerant vegetation growing on mud flats in sheltered, brackish coastal environments like estuaries.

Mangroves

Tropical intertidal trees and shrubs adapted to saline conditions with complex root systems that trap sediment, filter salt, and form new land along coasts.

Storm surge

A sudden, abnormally high rise in sea level above predicted astronomical tides generated by intense low-pressure weather systems and tropical cyclone winds.

Integrated Coastal Zone Management (ICZM)

A holistic coastal management approach that combines hard and soft engineering solutions to address erosion and flooding while balancing the needs of all stakeholders.

Beach replenishment

A soft engineering method involving the dumping or pumping of sand and shingle onto an eroding beach to broaden the beachfront and absorb wave energy.

Cliff re-grading

A soft engineering practice where the gradient of a cliff face is artificially softened to reduce slumping, mass movement, and undercut wave-cut notch development.

Beach reprofiling

The artificial movement and reshaping of existing beach sediment to increase beach elevation and dissipate wave energy before it hits cliff bases.

Managed retreat

A coastal management strategy where existing defences are removed or abandoned, allowing low-lying coastal land to flood naturally and form salt marsh habitats.

Sea wall

A hard engineering concrete wall, often constructed with a curved face, designed to reflect and deflect incoming wave energy back into the ocean.

Groynes

Wooden, steel, or rock structures built at right angles to the coast to interrupt longshore drift and trap sediment on the beach.

Rip-rap

Large boulders piled at the foot of cliffs or in front of sea walls to absorb and absorb the kinetic energy of breaking waves; also known as rock armour.

Gabions

Wire mesh boxes filled with stone, concrete, or rock that are stacked at cliff bases or behind beaches to reduce wave impact.

Revetments

Sloping wooden or concrete open-plank fences built at cliff bases or in front of sea walls to absorb wave energy while trapping sand behind them.

Hold the line

A Shoreline Management Plan approach that maintains the current position of the coast using hard and soft coastal engineering defences.

Advance the line

A Shoreline Management Plan strategy where new defence structures are constructed further out to sea to extend the coastline and reclaim coastal land.

Managed realignment

A Shoreline Management Plan policy allowing the coastline to move naturally inland under monitored conditions, primarily relying on soft engineering methods.

Do nothing

A Shoreline Management Plan decision where no capital investment or intervention is made to protect the coast from ongoing flooding and erosion.

Coastal Landform Identification (Fig. 3.1, 3.2, 3.3)

Landform W represents a wave-cut platform; Landform X is a sand beach; Landform Y indicates coastal sand dunes; Landform Z is a cliff face.

Raised Beaches Coastal Landscape (Figure 2a)

An emergent coastline in south west England featuring a raised beach covered in vegetation, an old relic wave-cut notch, an old sea cave, and fault joints eroded by former higher sea levels.

Mangrove Root Adaptations

Specialized root structures including buttress roots, knee roots, pencil roots, and prop (snorkel) roots that anchor mangrove trees in muddy sediments and aid oxygen exchange.