Middle to late Pleistocene uplift rate of the Hungarian Mountain Range at the Danube Bend, (Pannonian Basin) using in situ produced He

Topography of the terraced Danube Bend area indicates fast incision of the Danube River, which was followed by its tributaries dissecting deeply the former terrace levels. These surfaces are vertically bended along the river course, indicating antecedent incision of the Danube into the SW–NE trending Hungarian Mountain Range (HMR). Timing and rate of the incision of the Danube into the HMR and consequently, the rate of vertical motions have remained unresolved so far. This study aims at quantifying the landscape evolution and neotectonic deformation of the central part of the HMR. We used terrace levels along the antecedent section of the Danube River to constrain its incision rate, which is a measure for the uplift rate of the HMR.

Here we use ³He, a terrestrial in situ produced cosmogenic nuclide (TCN), to date uplifted geomorphologic levels along in the Danube Bend gorge. This method, first applied in the Carpathian–Pannonian system in the framework of present study, proved to be suitable for the quantification of landscape evolution in this area. Our ³He exposure age data suggest a maximum incision rate of 2.7 ± 0.1 mm/y for the last 170 ky. Considering likely effect of erosion a more conservative value of 1.6 mm/y for the last 270 ky, was obtained. Both rates are significantly higher than the incision rate of 0.41 mm/y of the Danube derived from previous geologic and geomorphic data for the last 360 ky. The formation of the terrace levels in the Danube Bend probably occurred during the last two glacial cycles (OIS 1–8). According to the exposure age data, there is no direct relationship between the terrace formation and climate in the Danube Bend. Incision of the Danube appears to be connected to the uplift of the HMR, obtained incision rate values can be taken as valid approximations of the uplift rate in the Danube Bend area.     

川西高原岷江上游河流阶地初步研究

基于岷江上游干流阶地地貌的野外观察和阶地沉积物的ESR年代测定,结合前人阶地测年数据,阐述了岷江上游干流晚第四纪阶地的形成过程和河谷下切历史,探讨了阶地演化对岷山和龙门山构造带隆升的响应过程。      

Anomalously high uplift rates along the Ventura—Santa Barbara Coast, California—tectonic implications

The NW—SE trending segments of the California coastline from Point Arena to Point Conception (500 km) and from Los Angeles to San Diego (200 km) generally parallel major right-lateral strike-slip fault systems. Minor vertical crustal movements associated with the dominant horizontal displacements along these fault systems are recorded in local sedimentary basins and slightly deformed marine terraces. Typical maximum uplift rates during Late Quaternary time are about 0.3 m/ka, based on U-series ages of corals and amino-acid age estimates of fossil mollusks from the lowest emergent terraces.In contrast, the E–W-trending segments of the California coastline between Point Conception and Los Angeles (200 km) parallel predominantly northward-dipping thrust and high-angle reverse faults of the western Transverse Ranges. Along this coast, marine terraces display significantly greater vertical deformation. Amino-acid age estimates of mollusks from elevated marine terraces along the Ventura—Santa Barbara coast imply anomalously high uplift rates of between 1 and 6 m/ka over the past 40 to 100 ka. The deduced rate of terrace uplift decreases from Ventura to Los Angeles, conforming with a similar trend observed by others in contemporary geodetic data.The more rapid rates of terrace uplift in the western Transverse Ranges reflect N—S crustal shortening that is probably a local accommodation of the dominant right-lateral shear strain along coastal California.     

长江三峡河段下切速率研究*

长江三峡河段的阶地主要分布在宽谷河段和长江支流河口部位。文章通过对阶地堆积物沉积相的分析和TL测年,计算出了三峡河段不同地点的下切速率:重庆河段为84.56cm/ka,涪陵河段为93.9cm/ka,丰都河段为69.8cm/ka,忠县河段为77.65cm/ka,万州河段为75.1cm/ka,奉节河段为83.8cm/ka,宜昌三斗坪河段为74.2cm/ka。 整个三峡河段的平均下切速率为81.2cm/ka。分析得出:1)三峡河段不同地点的下切速率相近;2)近0.4Ma以来,长江三峡河段的下切速率有越来越快的趋势,这表明该地区在此期间发生了构造隆升而引起河流下切加剧;3) 长江三峡河段的下切速率与金沙江下段相近。     

Dating Quaternary volcanism and incision by the River Tigris at Diyarbakır,southeast Turkey

New high‐precision Ar‐Ar dating of basalt underlying the city of Diyarbak?r, southeast Turkey, constrains the Quaternary incision history of the River Tigris, strengthening the pre‐existing chronology based on magnetostratigraphy and K‐Ar dates. The basalt, which overlies Tigris terrace gravel 70 m above the river, is part of the Karacada? shield volcano complex centred ca. 60 km to the southwest. The reverse‐magnetised Diyarbak?r basalt, one of relatively few flow units to reach the Tigris valley axis, has been dated to 1196 ± 19 ka (±2σ). Two lower terraces have been recognised in the Diyarbak?r area, 46 and 32 m above the present river, with at least one other further downstream. From this evidence the rate of Middle‐Late Pleistocene incision by the Tigris can be estimated; it probably reached ca. 0.07 mm a^?1, reflecting the characteristic global increase in uplift rates observed at that time. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

四川龙门山南段青衣江河流阶地形成时代及其构造地貌意义

地表调查发现,横穿龙门山南段的青衣江具有上游以发育深切峡谷为主,而中下游段阶地发育较完整的特点。采用光释光测年方法对现今青衣江低阶地进行年代学测试分析,获得了低阶地的形成年代,并结合对前人资料的对比和对青衣江河流阶地已有年代学数据的分析,基本确定青衣江中下游地区的T1~T7阶地主要形成于距今7.7~9.0ka,40~50ka,75~85ka,129ka,149ka,270~300ka,740ka。结合地表调查结果进一步推断,现今青衣江主河道在中更新世及之前已经存在。因此,现今的青衣江究竟是因断块整体倾斜式改道还是后期河流袭夺而形成需进一步研究。另外,据青衣江低阶地地貌面的年龄数据估算,龙门山南段青衣江流域不同段落的晚第四纪河流下切速率不同,中更新世以来,芦山至大岗顶段的河流下切速率明显较大,很可能是芦山地震发震构造(盲逆断层)在晚第四纪期间存在持续活动的地貌响应。     

Pleistocene evolution of the Danube in the Carpathian Basin

The present-day drainage system of the Carpathian Basin originates from the gradual regression of the last marine transgression (brackish Pannonian Sea). The flow directions of the rivers including the Danube, are determined by the varying rates and locations of subsidence within the region. The Danube, which forms the main axis of the drainage network, first filled the depression of the Little Plain Lake and then, further southward, the Slavonian Lake. From the end of the Pliocene, the crustal movements which caused the uplift of the Transdanubian Mountains, forced the Danube to flow in an easterly direction, towards the antecedent Visegrid Gorge, and into the subsiding basins of the Great Plain. Climatic changes during the Pleistocene had the effect of forming up to seven fluvial terraces. The uplift of the mountains is demonstrated by the deformation of the terraces, while the subsidence of the Plains is proven by an accumulation of several hundred metres of sediment. The river only occupied its present position south of Budapest in the latest Pleistocene.     

青藏高原东部牙着库河流阶地研究

构造运动和气候变化是制约内陆地区河流阶地发育的两个关键因素,而不同地区的河流对它们的响应方式多种多样.研究区海子山位于青藏高原东部的沙鲁里山中段,在第四纪期间经历了大幅度构造抬升及第四纪冰川作用.海子山北缘牙着库河谷保留着6级河流阶地,南缘稻城河谷完好地保留着第四纪冰川作用遗迹.本研究运用电子自旋共振技术对牙着库4级高阶地(第3～第6级)的砾石层及稻城河谷的第四纪冰川沉积物进行了测年,并对这4级阶地的形成过程进行了分析.结果表明,牙着库3～6级阶地基座及相应的砾石层均形成于冰消期,分别与深海氧同位素2、6、12、16阶段晚期相对应.待气候进一步变暖而逐渐进入间冰期,海子山冰川消融殆尽,下伏地壳负荷锐减,构造抬升效应的释放结合冰川均衡抬升使得牙着库河谷梯度增大,而同期的河流沉积物通量较小,结果导致流水切割前期加积的沉积物及其下伏基座形成一级新的河流阶地.牙着库河谷自深海氧同位素16阶段后期以来的平均下切速率为0.43 mm/a左右,小于海子山的平均抬升速率2 mm/a,与"河谷下切速率不大于山地抬升速率"一致.     

黄河晋陕峡谷河流阶地和鄂尔多斯高原第四纪构造运动

本文通过黄河晋陕峡谷河段21个地点的阶地横剖面观察和阶地对比研究,确定出6级宽谷阶地序列,同时,依据17个放射性测年数据对阶地定年。6级宽谷阶地序列揭示了鄂尔多斯高原第四纪区域造陆隆起和局部构造变形,区域造陆隆起的发生时间比之青藏高原隆起要滞后0．113～0．25Ma,而且,平均区域造陆隆起量比之青藏高原的内部和边缘的隆起量小得多。晋陕峡谷河段发生过3期加积作用幕,指示着造陆隆起景观中的气候变化时间线。渭河盆地北缘的韩城断裂悬崖带记录着构造基准面下降,影响的河流长度仅为21～127km。     

Late Cenozoic fluvial dynamics of the River Tana,Kenya, an uplift dominated record

The Late Cenozoic development of the River Tana in Kenya has been reconstructed for its central reach near its confluence with the River Mutonga, which drains the Mount Kenya region. Age control for this system has been provided by K–Ar and Ar–Ar dating. Between 3.21 and 2.65 Ma a major updoming occurred, in relation to the formation of the Kenyan rift valley. The tilting related to this doming has been reconstructed from lava flows that preserve former river gradients. Linear projection of these trends to the current rift valley rim suggests a net updoming of the eastern Gregory Rift valley by at least ∼1 km during 3.21–2.65 Ma. In contrast, since 2.65 Ma the Tana system has been mainly subject to relatively minor epeirogenic uplift. Changing climatic conditions combined with continuing uplift yielded a typical staircase of strath terraces with at least 10 distinct levels. A more detailed reconstruction of the incision rates since 215 ka has been made, by correlating mineralogically fingerprinted volcaniclastic Tana deposits with dated tephras in a lake record. These volcaniclastic sediments were deposited during glacial periods, contemporaneous with lahars. The reconstructed incision rates for the three youngest terraces are ∼0.1–0.2 mm a⁻¹, thus considerably faster than the overall average rate of valley incision since the Mid-Pliocene, of 0.06 mm a⁻¹. A plausible uplift history has been reconstructed using the estimated ages of the Tana terraces and marine terraces on the Indian Ocean coastline. The result suggests an increase in the rate of incision by the River Tana at ∼0.9 Ma, an observation typical in most European river terrace staircases. The reconstructed Late Quaternary development of Tana valley indicates that a similar Quaternary uplift mechanism has operated in both Europe and East Kenya, suggesting a globally applicable process.     

Long-term fluvial archives in Hungary: response of the Danube and Tisza rivers to tectonic movements and climatic changes during the Quaternary: a review and new synthesis

The paper discusses the Quaternary evolution of the Danube and Tisza rivers and their main tributaries in the context of evolution of the entire Pannonian Basin, which is Europe's largest intramontane basin, within the Alp–Carpathian orogen. The palaeo-drainage reconstruction of the Pannonian Basin for the pre-Quaternary period is outlined in connection with the gradual regression of Lake Pannon since the Late Miocene. Deltas of rivers that entered the basin from the northwest and northeast were gradually transformed into extended alluvial plains; thus, the earliest possible ancestor of the Danube coming southeastwards from the Alps could be as old as Late Miocene. By the Pliocene the whole Lake Pannon was infilled. The former extensional basin formation was replaced by a compresional stress field, which resulted in an uplift of the marginal flanks and late-stage subsidence anomalies. The increasing relief led to the formation of the Quaternary drainage pattern. The actively subsiding young basins were filled by fluvial sediments, transported by the Danube and Tisza river systems from the uplifting mountains. Between the subsiding regions of the Little and Great Plains, the Danube has formed an antecedent valley with terrace staircases between the uplifting sections of the Transdanubian Range and the North Midmountains. The formation of the terraces is attributed to periodic climate changes during the Pleistocene combined with differences in the uplift rate. The paper gives a complex overview of the classical chronology of the six terraces based on various data sources: mostly dating of loess/paleosol sequences, travertines, aeolian sand, and tephra strata overlying the fluvial sediments, complemented by scattered vertebrate faunal data and archaeological evidence directly from the terrace sediments.The Quaternary drainage pattern evolution of the Great Plain, with a strong tectonic control, is discussed in detail. Rivers originating from the uplifting marginal areas were drawn towards the subsiding depressions which served as local base level. Changes in subsidence rates in space and time throughout the Quaternary resulted in the evolution of a complex drainage pattern. A special emphasis is placed on the Late Pleistocene–Holocene development of the Middle–Tisza region and the Körös basin, where the Berettyó–Körös Rivers form an eastern tributary system of the Tisza River. A comparative evaluation of these two areas is especially relevant, as they provide insights into large-scale Late Pleistocene avulsion of the Tisza River. OSL dating, complemented with inferred transport directions determined from heavy mineral analysis of fluvial sediments in the Körös basin, has revealed an ancient large meandering river system that can be identified with the palaeo-Tisza, which was flowing along a tectonically controlled depression during the Late Pleniglacial. Successions in the Middle Tisza region have allowed differentiation between the older channels of the palaeo-Bodrog River and the Sajó–Hernád alluvial fan and the younger meander belts of the new course of the Tisza. In the Tisza system, changes in river style (braided to various scales of meandering) show correspondence to millennial-scale climate changes of the last 25 ka, while in the Körös basin the effects of tectonics are overprinted onto the regional climatic signals.     

Pleistocene tectonics inferred from fluvial terraces of the northern Upper Rhine Graben, Germany

This study of fluvial terraces of the River Rhine and tributaries aims to search for indications of Pleistocene tectonic activity. The study area includes the northern Upper Rhine Graben (URG), the Mainz Basin and the adjacent Rhenish Massif with the Middle Rhine Valley. High rates of Quaternary surface processes, large amount of human modifications, relatively slow tectonic deformation and presently low intra-plate seismic activity characterize this area. Therefore, the records of relatively slow tectonic deformation are less well preserved and thus difficult to detect. This study uses the relative position of fluvial terraces to determine the more local effects of fault movements on the terraces and to evaluate their displacement rates and patterns. The research is based on a review of previous terrace studies and new terrace mapping from the eastern Mainz Basin and the bordering URG using topographic map interpretations and field observations. This newly mapped sequence of terrace surfaces can be correlated to other terraces in the vicinity on the basis of relative height levels. Terrace correlation between the western Mainz Basin and Middle Rhine Valley relies on a single chronostratigraphic unit (Mosbach sands) and additional relative height correlations. This is the first study to present a continuous correlation of terraces from the western margin of the URG to the Rhenish Massif and enables the study of the transition from the subsiding graben to the uplifted Rhenish Massif. By means of a longitudinal profile, which ranges from the URG to the Rhenish Massif, the influence of individual fault movements on the terrace levels and the large-scale regional uplift is demonstrated. It is evident from the profile that the uplift of Early to Middle Pleistocene terraces increases northwards, towards the Rhenish Massif. The uplift was diachronic, with a significant pulse occurring first in the northern URG (Lower Pleistocene) and later in the Rhenish Massif (Middle Pleistocene). The largest vertical displacements are recorded for the boundary fault separating the Mainz Basin and the Rhenish Massif (Hunsrück–Taunus Boundary Fault) and for faults bounding the northeastern Mainz Basin. The motions and displacement rates calculated for individual faults indicate deformation rates in the order of 0.01–0.08 mm/year. At this stage, the calculation of displacement rates depends mostly on a single dated stratigraphic unit. Additional dating of terrace deposits is urgently needed to better constrain the temporal development of the terrace sequence and the impact of tectonic movements.     

六盘山东麓泾河上游河流阶地的形成年代及新构造运动意义

六盘山是研究青藏高原东北缘隆升与构造变形的关键部位,其东麓泾河河流阶地是第四纪以来六盘山构造隆升的地貌载体。通过对泾河上游河流阶地的剖面实测,厘定了河流阶地的级序,泾河上游主要发育5级河流阶地T5-T1,不同地段阶地的形态类型不同,柳树沟T5、T4和T3为堆积阶地,T2和T1为基座阶地,高家山均为侵蚀或基座阶地;利用光释光(OSL)、电子自旋共振(ESR)测年并与黄土-古土壤序列进行对比,建立了河流阶地的年代格架,T5-T1年代分别为541 ka B.P.、477 ka B.P.、279 ka B.P.、60 ka B.P.和8 ka B.P。阶地的形态类型、形成年代与气候阶段的对应关系研究表明,泾河上游河流阶地以构造隆升驱动为主,气候变化影响为辅;541~279 ka B.P.期间柳树沟地区为堆积区,堆积速率为0.31 m/ka,而高家山为构造隆升区,河流下切速率为0.37 m/ka,堆积速率与侵蚀速率基本一致,说明T5、T4和T3阶面上较厚的砾石层是六盘山隆升的相关沉积;279 ka B.P.时期由于六盘山快速隆升驱使山前柳树沟地区由堆积区转为侵蚀区,河流侵蚀作用加强造成T2、T1平均下切速率增大为1.13 m/ka,这次地貌转换事件是在青藏高原扩展隆升的背景下六盘山向东挤出隆升的结果。研究结果为青藏高原东北缘以面积和体积扩张的观点提供了新的依据。     

Late Quaternary fluvial terraces of the Romagna and Marche Apennines,Italy: Climatic,lithologic, and tectonic controls on terrace genesis in an active orogen

We synthesize a new fluvial terrace chronostratigraphy of the Bidente and Musone Rivers cast within a broader European framework, which forms the basis of a terrace genesis and river incision model for the northern Apennines, Italy. Our model, supported by terrace long profiles, correlation to Po foreland sediments, 15 new radiocarbon dates, and published numeric and relative stratigraphic ages, highlights how drainage basin substrate drives concurrent formation of strath terraces in the Bidente basin and fill terraces in the Musone basin. Quaternary climate change paces the formative geomorphic processes through unsteady discharges of water and sediment. In the weathering-limited setting represented by the Bidente basin, siliciclastic detritus carves broad strath surfaces during glacial climates that are preserved as terraces as the river incises during the transition to an interglacial climate. In contrast, the transport-limited and carbonate detritus dominated Musone basin sees valleys deeply buried by aggradation during glacial climates followed by river incision during the transition to an interglacial climate. Incision of these rivers over the past ～1 million years has been both unsteady and non-uniform. These and all Po-Adriatic draining rivers are proximal to a base level defined by mean sea level and have little room for increasing their longitudinal profile concavities through incision, particularly in their lower reaches despite periodic glacio-eustatic drawdowns. As a result, the observed incision is best explained by rock uplift associated with active local fault or fold growth embedded in the actively thickening and uplifting Apennine foreland.     

内蒙古狼山山前台地成因及其新构造运动意义

内蒙古狼山地处阴山造山带西段、河套断陷带的西北缘,晚新生代以来狼山山前断裂广泛发育、构造抬升强烈。研究晚更新世以来狼山的构造隆升对深入了解河套断陷带的形成演化机制及其隆升过程对河套盆地古地理格局的影响具有重要的意义。狼山山前翁格勒其格和乌兰敖包台地的沉积学、地貌学和年代学研究表明,T1台地形成于47.4 kaB.P.,其沉积物为晚更新世河套古大湖沉积;T2台地形成于69 kaB.P.,其沉积物可能为黄河流经狼山山前的冲积物。台地特征的分析显示,狼山山前台地主要由构造抬升形成,两级台地记录了狼山晚更新世晚期(Qp^3-2)以来的构造隆升过程。69 kaB.P.到47.4 kaB.P.翁格勒其格和乌兰敖包地区的隆升速率分别为1.34 m/ka和1.25 m/ka,47.4 kaB.P.以来分别为0.81 m/ka和1.18 m/ka,狼山南段(翁格勒其格地区)构造抬升有减小的趋势。晚更新世晚期(Qp^3-2)以来由于狼山的快速隆升,导致黄河河道不断东迁,河套平原的古河道是其迁移的证据。狼山山前湖岸阶地的研究进一步证实晚更新世晚期河套地区发育统一古大湖。     

Uplift-driven valley incision and river terrace formation in southern England

Outside the limits of Middle Pleistocene glaciation, the river basins of Southern England contain long Cenozoic terrestrial sedimentary records. Of greatest importance are the river terrace sequences, which contain biostratigraphical and sedimentary evidence that testifies to the high-amplitude climatic changes of the Quaternary. However, trends in valley development cannot easily be accommodated within the framework of Quaternary climatic change. It is argued in this paper that episodic incision and terrace development result from uplift, a consequence of the interplay between continuing Alpine orogenic movements and erosion-driven isostasy. Using a simple linear model (height–age) an uplift rate of ca. 7 cm ka⁻¹ is estimated for the terrace sequence in the upper Thames valley. This preliminary model is evaluated using the records of adjacent basins. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

西昆仑山前河流阶地的形成及其构造意义

西昆仑山前河流普遍发育6级阶地,利用光释光（OSL）与热释光（TL）方法对采自西昆仑山前几条主要河流的低阶地堆积物样品进行年代测定。研究结果显示,主要河流低阶地的形成具有同时性,构造活动是河流阶地形成的主要控制因素。河流阶地的年龄测定结果表明,西昆仑山前河流阶地最早形成于约1.2Ma,T4、T3、T2阶地分别形成于约39ka、18ka和5ka。多级阶地的形成反映了河流自早更新世中期开始下切于活动抬升的西昆仑山。河流阶地的发育及区域对比揭示了西昆仑第四纪晚期以来的隆升过程,区域构造活动明显地影响河流的形态与行为。河流阶地的分布、地貌特征及区域对比表明,河流阶地的形成与演化受新构造活动、山脉隆升、气候变化等多种因素的影响。     

Late Quaternary river terrace sequences in the eastern Kunlun Range,northern Tibet: A combined record of climatic change and surface uplift

The Kunlun Range, a reactivated orogenic belt, constitutes the northern margin of the Tibetan Plateau. The extreme relief and major landforms of the Kunlun Range are a product of late Cenozoic tectonics and erosion. However, well-developed late Quaternary terraces that occur along the northern slope of the Kunlun Range probably resulted from climatic change rather than surface uplift. The terrace sequences formed in thick Quaternary valley fills and have total incision depths of 50–60 m. Optically stimulated luminescence dating was employed to place time controls on the valley fills and associated terraces. Dating results suggest that periods of significant aggradation were synchronous between different rivers and correspond to the last glacial stage. The abrupt change from aggradation to incision occurred between 21.9 ± 2.7 and 16 ± 2.2 ka, coincident with the last glacial–interglacial transition. Additional terraces developed during the late glacial period and early to middle Holocene. Based on a broader set of chronological data in northern Tibet, at least four regional incision periods can be recognized. Chronological data, terrace elevation profiles, and climate proxy records suggest that these terracing periods were triggered by cool and/or wet climatic conditions. A geometric survey of the riverbed longitudinal profile suggests that surface uplift serves as a potential dynamic forcing for long-term incision. A model is proposed for terrace formation as a response to climatic perturbation in an uplifted mountain range.     

黄河中游响应气候变化和地表相对抬升发育阶地研究

揭示河流系统响应气候变化和地表抬升的机制是理解流域地貌演化以及水系发育过程的基础,其核心难题是如何充分认识它们在阶地发育中扮演的角色.以往的研究倾向于分开讨论气候变化和地表抬升在河流阶地发育中的作用,认为河流堆积/侧蚀和下切行为分别与冰期和间冰期气候对应,或者将阶地作为地表抬升的直接证据.首先,从上下游河段对比的视角初...     

Evaluating the role of climate and tectonics during non-steady incision of the Yellow River: evidence from a 1.24 Ma terrace record near Lanzhou,China

The competing roles of bedrock uplift and climatic change in the formation of fluvial terraces remain uncertain. Most of recent studies have attributed terrace formation to climatic changes and held that, even in tectonically active settings, climate variations control cycles of terrace planation and abandonment. Based on field investigations of loess-paleosol sequences, magnetostratigraphy and optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) dating, we develop a new chronology for a spectacular flight of terraces along the Yellow River near Lanzhou, China over past 1.24 Ma. All the terraces are strikingly similar in that they have several meters of paleosol developed directly above fluvial deposits on the terrace treads, suggesting that the abandonment of each terrace due to river incision occurs during the transition from glacial to interglacial climates. However, the ages of terraces cluster in two relatively short time periods (1.24–0.86 Ma and 0.13 Ma – present). During the intervening time between 0.86 Ma and 0.13 Ma, terraces either did not form or were not preserved. We suggest that this record indicates that rock uplift rates varied through time and influenced terrace formation/preservation. Thus, our results demonstrate the utility of deep chronologic records from fluvial terraces for deconvolving the effects of tectonics and climate on fluvial incision.