Coastal Land Formations

Question 1

Wave cut platform

Answer 1

Caused my marine processes of hydraulic action and abrasion
Powerful destructive waves undercut the cliff to from c shaped wave cut notch
Overtime this increases causing the overhang to collapse as it’s unstable due to subaruel processes
This causes the cliff to retreat and leaves behind a wave cut platform visible a low tides

Question 2

Caves arches stacks and stumps

Answer 2

Waves hit against headlands of more resistant rock
This gets exploited of its fissures and bedding planes due to HA. And AB
Overtime these fissures get enlarged and formed a cave called cavitation
Eventually erosions cuts through the headland forming an arch
The roof of the cliff will eventually fall due to gravity and weathering
This leaves behind a stack that overtime from marine erosion and weather will collapse into a stump visible at low tide

Question 3

Caves blowholes and geos

Answer 3

Powerful and erosional waves break against healing’s or more restrictive sedimentary clastic rock
Waves exploit the weaknesses by marine erosion creating fissures and joints
Faults get bigger and create a cave called cavitation
A geo is formed through a natural fault line in the cave which reaches the cliff surface
A blowhole is alsmot formed in the cave by waves abrading upwards and forces out of the headland

Question 4

Psammosere

Answer 4

Sand dune succession starts with the embryo dune
Conditions are most hostile for pioneer species such as Lyme grass
Organic matter 0.8%, pH 8.5, small soil depth with high wind speeds and inundation of salt water
These species can tolerate moving sand and intense heating
Invasion of vegetation into the area is crucial to stabilise the area or sand will be moved by wind of waves
Roots bind sediment together which allows a development of fore-dunes and yellow dunes
Marrom grass then outcompetes the sea twitch which further stabilises the sandy coastline with a more developed root system as well as protection from wind erosion through sheltering action of the vegetation

Question 5

Haloseres

Answer 5

In estuarine areas salt tolerant plants know as halophytes stabilise the estuarine area
Mudflats are colonised by green algae and eel grass
Both pioneer species can tolerate being underwater and begin to stabilise the area
Roots reduce the removal of sediment by the waves
Long leaves of the eel grass reduce the velocity of the waves
Salicirnia and spartinia then continue to stabilise the coastline through the action of a more developed root system

Question 6

What’s an example of a discordant coastline

Answer 6

South west Ireland

Question 7

What’s a discordant coastline

Answer 7

They create headlands and bays
Where an arrangement of rock of alternating layers of more resistant and less resistant
Bays have a semi circular shape as waves entering the bay dissipate and deposits sediment
Headlands stick out into the sea and refract waves which increases the rate of erosion and energy is concentrated here

Question 8

What’s two examples of concordant coastlines

Answer 8

1. Coast of Dalmatia in Croatia
2. The Balsic sea coastline of Poland lagoons

Question 9

What are concordant coastlines

Answer 9

Where geology has been folded due to tectonic activity into series of anticlines and syclines
They have been drowned by rising sea level
E.g Croatia

Half coastlines are another type of concordant coastline as they form low energy environment where there is deposition of muds and sands
Large lagoons are found behind the deposit parallel to the shoreline
E.g Poland Vistula Haff lagoon