Variable vegetation cover and episodic sand movement on longitudinal desert sand dunes

Longitudinal (linear) sand dunes of the Simpson and Strzelecki dunefields in eastern central Australia present a paradox. Low levels of activity today stand in contrast to luminescence dating which has repeatedly shown deep deposits of sand on dune crests dating to within the late Holocene. In order to investigate the nature of dune activity in the Simpson–Strzelecki dunefield, vegetation and sand mobility were investigated by detailed vegetation survey and measurement of rippled area and loose sand depth of dunes at three sites along a climatic gradient. The response of both vegetation and sand movement to inter-annual climate variability was examined by repeat surveys of two sites in drought and non-drought conditions. Projected plant cover and plant + crust cover were found to have inverse linear relationships with rippled area and the area of deep loose sand. No relationship was found between these measures of sand movement and the plant frontal area index. A negative exponential relationship between equivalent mobile sand depth on dune surfaces and both vascular plant cover and vascular + crust cover was also found. There is no simple threshold of vegetation cover below which sand transport begins. Dunes with low perennial plant cover may form small dunes with slip faces leading to a positive feedback inhibiting ephemeral plant growth in wet years and accelerating sand transport rates. The linear dunefields are largely within the zone in which plant cover is sufficient to enforce low sand transport rates, and in which there is a strong response of vegetation and sand transport to inter-annual variation in rainfall. Both ephemeral plants (mostly forbs) and crust were found to respond rapidly to large (> 20 mm/month) rainfall events. On millennial time-scales, the level of dune activity is controlled by vegetation cover and probably not by fluctuations of wind strength. Land use or extreme, decadal time-scale, drought may destabilise dunes by removing perennial plant cover, accelerating wind erosion.     

DENDROGEOMORPHOLOGICAL ANALYSES ON EXPOSED ROOTS ALONG TWO MOUNTAIN HIKING TRAILS IN THE CENTRAL ITALIAN ALPS

ABSTRACT. Mountain landscapes show rapid evolution, especially at high altitudes, in response to current climate changes. In addition, the greater number of routes and trails made available and the increase in tourism have caused some impacts on mountain areas. Gradual soil erosion has been observed along some hiking trails, with the latter tending to deepen, and with stronger erosion where the trail cuts the slope. Where trails cross forested areas, trees can suffer root damage from foot trampling as roots become exposed. A dendrogeomorphological study was conducted on trees along two hiking trails in upper Valtellina (Italian Alps). On the first trail, in Valle dei Forni, European larches and stone pines, mostly with exposed roots, were sampled. A mean erosion rate of 2.7 mm/a, related to deepening of the footpath, was obtained, and various degrees of root growth disturbance along the trail were observed. In particular, the growth of many sampled roots shows an increase in ring width corresponding with the moment when root exposure occurred, followed, after 3–5 years, by rapid growth suppression. The exposure of many roots has taken place since the 1980s. No significant variations in stem growth were observed, even when there were exposed and damaged roots. Along the second trail, in Valle Alpisella, exposed roots of mountain pines were analysed. A mean erosion rate of 3.2–3.7 mm/a, related to the escarpments bordering the footpath, was obtained, while no significant changes were detected in root growth.     

黄土坡面侵蚀产沙时空演变的REE示踪技术研究

室内交叉布设不同的稀土氧化物,通过人工模拟次降雨,在同一试验条件下,对坡面侵蚀沿顺坡方向和深度方向的演变过程同时展开研究。结果表明:REE示踪技术对定量研究土壤侵蚀具有较高的精度;降雨前期,片蚀与细沟侵蚀发育程度基本相当;后期细沟侵蚀占据坡面侵蚀的主导地位,其侵蚀平均加速度和平均侵蚀率分别是片蚀的15倍、9倍;试验结束,细沟侵蚀占据坡面总侵蚀的90%;本试验条件下,坡面下1/3区域为侵蚀活跃带。     

水库下游河流再造床过程中的河岸侵蚀

根据实测河道地形资料,分析了水库下游河床演变中的河岸侵蚀现象,包括不同横向边界约束条件、不同床沙组成和不同河型河段的河岸侵蚀的特征及规律。结果表明:①水库下游均会有河岸侵蚀发生,但初期一般以下切为主,后期以展宽为主。②对于横向边界约束较强的河段,河岸侵蚀相对较弱;相反,则河岸坍塌严重,河岸侵蚀强烈;③对不同的河床组成和边滩组成的河段:河床较粗特别是形成抗冲粗化层,且边滩组成较细的河段,河岸侵蚀现象非常剧烈;河床组成较细的河段,如果边滩抗冲性较强,则河岸侵蚀现象相对较弱,如果滩地组成较细、容易坍塌,河岸侵蚀也会较强;④不同的河型有着不同的河岸侵蚀现象。分汊河段以主汊为主;游荡段的游荡特性在初期受到抑制;弯曲河段的撇弯切滩现象较普遍。     

The significance of rock structure,lithology and pre‐glacial deep weathering for the shape of intermediate‐scale glacial erosional landforms

The main landforms within the glacially scoured Precambrian rocks of the Swedish west coast are closely connected to the principal structural pattern and have lately been explained as mainly a result of etch processes, probably during the Mesozoic and with a possible second period of etching during the Neogene. To explore the effect of multiple glacial erosion on the rock surfaces, an island with two different lithologies and with striae from different directions was selected for a detailed study, focusing on the shape of roches moutonnées. Air‐photo interpretation of bedrock lineaments and roches moutonnées combined with detailed field mapping and striae measurements are used to interpret the structural and lithological control on the resulting shape. The study reveals a significant difference in shape between roches moutonnées in augen‐granite and orthogneiss. Low elongated and streamlined roches moutonnées occur in the gneiss area, striated by a Late Weichselian ice flow from the NE. This ice flow is subparallel with both the local dominant trend of topographically well‐expressed joints and the schistosity of the gneiss. Frequently, there are no signs of quarrying on the lee‐sides of the gneiss roches moutonnées and hence they resemble the shape of whalebacks, or ruwares, as typically associated with the exposed basal weathering surface found in tropical areas. The granite roches moutonnées were formed by an older ice flow from the ESE, which closely followed the etched WNW–ESE joint system of the granite. Late Weichselian ice flow from the NE caused only minor changes of the landforms. On the contrary, marks of the early ESE ice flow are poorly preserved in the gneiss area, where it probably never had any large effect as the flow was perpendicular to both schistosity and structures and, accordingly, also to the pre‐glacial relief. The study demonstrates that coincidence between ice flow direction and pre‐glacially etched structures is most likely to determine the effects of glacial erosion. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A model of equilibrium bed topography for meander bends with erodible banks

Channel curvature produces secondary currents and a transverse sloping channel bed, along which the depth increases towards the outer bank. As a result deep pools tend to form adjacent to the outer bank, promoting bank collapse. The interaction of sediment grains with the primary and secondary flow and the transverse sloping bed also causes meanders to move different grain sizes in different proportions and directions, resulting in a consistent sorting pattern. Several models have been developed to describe this process, but they all have the potential to over‐predict pool depth because they cannot account for the influence of erodible banks. In reality, bank collapse might lead to the development of a wider, shallower cross‐section and any resulting flow depth discrepancy can bias associated predictions of flow, sediment transport, and grain‐size sorting. While bed topography, sediment transport and grain sorting in bends will partly be controlled by the sedimentary characteristics of the bank materials, the magnitude of this effect has not previously been explored. This paper reports the development of a model of flow, sediment transport, grain‐size sorting, and bed topography for river bends with erodible banks. The model is tested via intercomparison of predicted and observed bed topography in one low‐energy (5·3 W m^?2 specific stream power) and one high‐energy (43·4 W m^?2) study reach, namely the River South Esk in Scotland and Goodwin Creek in Mississippi, respectively. Model predictions of bed topography are found to be satisfactory, at least close to the apices of bends. Finally, the model is used in sensitivity analyses that provide insight into the influence of bank erodibility on equilibrium meander morphology and associated patterns of grain‐size sorting. The sensitivity of meander response to bank cohesion is found to increase as a function of the available stream power within the two study bends. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

GIS支持下的山东省土壤侵蚀空间特征分析

利用遥感（RS）技术提取土壤侵蚀信息，在地理信息系统（GIS）支持下，借助数据库管理系统（DBMS），建立空间数据库和属性数据库；以县级行政区域为综合分析单元，计算土壤侵蚀强度综合评价指数并进行分级处理，对山东省土壤侵蚀空间特征进行分析。     

分布式侵蚀预报模型中网格面积的选定——以黄土高原丘陵沟壑区为例

在分布式土壤侵蚀过程模型中 ,承载数据以及进行运算的最小单元 ,即基本地块的选取是非常关键的 ,它直接关系到模型的模拟精度和运算数据量。目前大多数分布式模型都采用平均布设矩形网格的方法 ,这种方法在基本网格的大小选取上存在着盲目性和不统一性。本文以黄土高原丘陵沟壑区为例 ,利用GIS和SPSS分析了黄土高原丘陵沟壑区属性均一的基本地块在面积上的统计规律 ,给出了基本地块选取的合理依据 ,以促进建立更好的分布式模型     

我国低山丘陵区水土流失生态环境背景分析

我国是一个以山地为主的国家，山地多为大江大河的源头，而低山丘陵为这些大江大河支流的发源地，这些区域的水土流失必然会带来环境问题。本文以TM影象为数据源，以GIS为技术支撑，从DEM中获取低山丘陵层，以此为MASK层，提取水土流失及相应的生态环境背景各层，包括土地利用、坡度、年降水、积温、植被等生态背景层，这些背景层是多年数据的平均，然后把水土流失层与环境背景各层分别叠加，分析不同环境背景下水土流失状况，从而为治理水土流失提出科学依据。     

云南省金沙江流域水土流失基本特征分析

在应用新近建立的云南金沙江流域土壤流失方程测算该流域各县(市、区)年均土壤流失总量和各地类年均 土壤流失量基础上,分析了该流域水土流失的总体特征、各地类水土流失特征和不同坡度级坡耕地的水土流失特 征,为因地制宜地防治水土流失提供了依据。