Coastal environment terms Flashcards
What is wave action?
The shaping of the coast by the action of waves.
What is erosion?
The wearing away of land by water, wind, and ice.
What is deposition?
Laying down material carried by waves.
What is transportation?
Movement of material within water.
What is longshore drift?
Zig-zag movement of beach material along the coast by waves.
What is mechanical weathering?
Breakdown of rock by physical factors (wind, water, temperature).
What is chemical weathering?
Breakdwon of rock through chemical changes, often by water.
What is biological weathering?
Breakdown of rock by plants and animals.
What is mass movement?
Downhill movement of material due to gravity.
What is sliding?
Saturated material moves down a slope.
What is sliding?
Whoel segment of cliff moves downslope along a shear plane.
What are headlands?
Resistant rock protruding/sticking out into the sea.
What are bays?
Found between headlands where softer rock erodes more quickly.
What are cliffs?
Steep rock faces formed by erosion of resistant rock.
What are wave-cut platforms?
Gently sloping rock exposed at low tide.
What are caves?
Formed by erosion of weak points in resistant rock.
What are arches?
Wave-eroded passages through headlands.
What are stacks?
Pillars of rock left after an arch collapses
What are stumps?
Formed when a sea stack collapses due to wave action.
What are sand dunes?
Hills of sand formed by wind, located behind beaches.
What are Salt marshes?
Coastal grasslands regularly flooded by seawater.
Abiotic
Non-living components of an ecosystem.
Biotic
Living components of an ecosystem.
Industrialisation
Economic shift toward manufacturing and secondary acticities.
Agricultural practices
Methods farmer use to cultivate land.
Tourism
Industry of travelling for pleasure
Deforestation
Large-sclae clearing of forests.
What are spits
Narrow sand accumulation extending from land into the sea
What are bars
Ridges of sand blocking a bay or lagoon
What are beaches
Temporary sand deposits along the coast
What are destructive waves?
Powerful waves causing erosion; strong BACKWASH.
What are constructive waves?
Gentle waves depositing materials; strong SWASH
What is swash?
Forward movement of water up a beach.
What is backwash?
Water returning to the sea after a wave breaks.
What is prevailing wind?
Common wind direction in a region.
What is sediment cell?
System where sediment circulates along a coast.
What is a fetch?
Maximum water distance wind can blow across.
What is a berm?
Raised sand ridge at the back of a beach.
What is a ria?
River valley flooded by rising sea levels.
What is fjord?
Steep-sided valley flooded by sea due to glacier movement.
What are raised beaches?
Beaches elevated due to tfalling sea levels.
What is biodiversity?
Variety of life in an ecosystem.
What is salinity?
Amount of salt in a body of water.
What is estuary
Tidal river mouths with exposed mudflats at low tide.
What is brackish?
Slightly salty water, typical of estuaries.
What is food chain?
Sequence of organisms dependent on each otehr for food.
What are Coral reefs?
Underwater ecosystems made of coral colonies.
What is intertidal zone?
Area between high and low tide marks.
What is plant succession?
Gradual replacement of plant species over time.
What is biomass?
Total mass of living organisms in an area.
What is litter?
Dead plant material on the soil surface.
