Coastal landscapes glossary 2 Flashcards
what are the types of dune
embryo
fore
yellow
grey
whats a yellow dune
taller than a fore dune
whats a grey dune
the furthest dune from the beach and conditions are less salty so more plants grow
dune slack meaning
wind cam form depressions in the sand where ponds may form
whats a headland
more resistant (hard) rock which juts (sticks)
bay meaning
mainly circular and created out of less resistant rock.
-form between resistant rock and often have beaches
whats a cliff
a steep, high rock face formed by weathering and erosion
whats a wave-cut platform
wide sloping surface at the base of a cliff
-eroded by hydraulic erosion and abrasion
wave cut notch
small notch cut in to the cliff at the level of a high tide
-eroded by hydraulic action and abraison
whats the difference between a wave-cut platform and a wave-cut notch
wave-cut platform happens at the base of a cliff
wave-cut notch happens at the level of high tide
how is a cave formed
hydraulic action that makes cracks bigger to create a cave
hows an arch formed
the cave becomes bigger due to hyrdaulic action and abrasion
-eventually the cave breaks through the headland to create an arch
whats a stack
an arch collapses as theres nothing to support it
hows a stump formed
stack gets eroded further by erosion and weathering (wind and rain) to form a stump
whats a spit
a finger of new land made of sand . and juts out into the sea from the coast
whats a bar
a spit which has grown across a bay and forms a bar of sand with freshwater lake trapped behind
whats salt marsh
low lying (below sea level) coastal wetland
whats hard engineering
hard structures to protect the coast
e.g sea walls, groynes and rock armour
whats a sea wall
a concrete wall built to protect the coast by deflecting wave energy
groyne meaning
a wooden barrier built out into the sea to stop longshore drift or sand and shingle
helping the beach to grow
gabion meaning
a steel wire mesh filled with boulders
-a hard engineering defence
whats rock armour
large boulders dumped on the beach as a part of costal defences
soft engineering
sustainable approach to manage coast
beach nourishment
adding new material to a beach artifically e.g by dumping sand
beach reprofiling
changes the profile or shape of the beach
managed retreat
allows controlled flooding of low lying coastal areas or cliff collapsein areas where the land value is low
pioneer plant meaning
first plant species to colonise (take over) an area.
-well adapted to living in a harsh environment e.g salt water
vegetation succession
sequence of vegetation (plants) to colonise an environment
-takes place over hundreds of years
what are the economic reasons people use the coast
-business owners
-fishmen
-lifeguards
-hotel owners
-tourists
what are the environmental reasons people use the coast
-geologists
-marine biologists
-environmentalists
what are the social reasons people use the coast
-snorkelling
-watersports