GEOMORPHIC CYCLES

Narendranath Guria
Geomorphogenesis ("land" + "form" + "origin") is
controlled in many way by many different factors. Some
of the processes operate at the Earth's surface, others
work in the subsurface. Most surficial processes (except
sediment deposition) degrade thelandscape(i.e. wear it
down) whereas most internal processes contribute in
some way to building up (aggrade) the surface. So in a
sense, external forces battle internal forces for control
of the appearanceof the Earth!!!
Theendresult isalandform.
The Influence of Rock Types on
Landscape
The appearance and characteristic features of landforms
are greatly influenced by the underlying rock types. Softer
rocks like clay and shale are worn down much faster than
harder rocks like granite.
Within West Malaysia the resistant granites form the high
ground of the Main Range and the Eastern Range, where
several peaks rise to over 2,000 feet. Shales, schistsand
sandstones, being less resistant, form the much lower,
rounded hills. Recent river sediments form flat plains.
The limestones, resistant because of their permeability,
form prominent steep-sided hills such as those near Ipoh
and in Perlis.
The larger task of endogenetic forces is to
create irregularities on the surface of the
Earth by volcanism, mountain building, etc. As
soon as these endforms are exposed on the
surface, the various processes of weathering
start working on them. Soon these are
weathered, and in due course of time, the
weathered products are transported by
variousagents.
The whole period, during which erosion
processeserode the new surface to sealevel is
one cycleand since erosion playsan important
part in it, it iscalled the cycle of erosion.
The significance of the cycle concept is that it
explains the sequential development of
landformsin atemporal framework.
There are three views on the cycle of erosion.
These are of Davis, Penck and King.
These views relate to the sequential
development of landforms in an orderly
fashion during which the slope also evolves in
a variety of ways. Thus, these cycles, while
describingthe development of landforms, also
give information about the evolution of
slopes.
DAVIS CONCEPT- The Geographic
Cycle
The notion, first introduced by the American
geographer William Morris Davis, that a high-
level land surface would be eroded until the
wholesurfacewaslowered.
Acc. to him Each type of regional geological
structure could be viewed as evolving under the
protracted operation of a given process to
produce a sequence of stages of landform
assemblages. Each stage would posses a suite of
landformsappropriateto and characteristicof it.
Davis developed a theory of landform creation and
erosion, which he called the "geographical cycle." This
theory is more commonly known as the "cycle of
erosion," or more properly, the "geomorphic cycle." His
theory explained that mountains and landforms are
created, mature, and then becomeold.
Davis's cycle of erosion (also known as the
geographical cycle) is a theoretical construct which
proposes that humid temperate landscapes are a
function of what Davis called the trio of geographic
controls, namely: the geological structure; the
geomorphological processes of weathering and
erosion; and the stage of landform evolution
(essentiallyequivalent to thepassageof time).
He explained that the cycle begins with the uplift of
mountains. Rivers and streams begin to create V-
shaped valleys among the mountains (the stage called
"youth"). During this first stage, the relief is steepest
and most irregular.
Over time, the streams are able to carve wider valleys
("maturity") and then begin to meander, leaving only
gently rollinghills("old age").
Finally, all that is left is a flat, level plain at the lowest
elevation possible (called the "base level.") This plain
wascalled by Davisa"peneplain," which means"almost
aplain" for aplain isactually acompletely flat surface).
Then, "rejuvenation" occurs and there is another uplift
of mountainsand the cyclecontinues.
The cycle of erosion theory involves periods of uplift, youth, maturity and old age,
followed by more uplift. It applies mainly to humid landscapes in temperate regions
wherestreamsarethedominant agent of erosion.
A peneplain is an almost flat surface near base level, sea level in most cases. Its
almost- a- plain aplain scarcely risingabovesealevel at thecoast, but risinggradually
inland towardstheoccasional residual hillsknown asmonad nocks.
A useful starting point in explaining the cycle of erosion is when a peneplain
undergoes a period of rapid uplift. This is followed by youth, where streams become
established and erode down toward base level. Much of the original flat surface
remainsand isnot drained by the streams. Over time, the main streamshave cut close
to baselevel and amoreextensive tributary network isestablished.
In maturity, the stream valleyshave widened so that the original flat surface hasbeen
eroded everywhere and streams drain the entire landscape. The streams become
graded, meaning that there is a balance between erosion and deposition all along
their lengths and valley floors become wider as the streams begin to meander. In
addition, the hillsidesslowly become lesssteep.
Given enough time, the landscape will be denuded to oldage, alow relief surface near
base level with low hills where mountains used to stand. With the entire land surface
close to base level, running water has little power to move sediment and deep soils
develop. Given enough time, the old age stage merges into a peneplain and uplift
occursagain.
Stages in the fluvial cycle of erosion
Walter Pencks Concept- Slope Replacement
(1924, 1953)
Penck was influenced by field observations made in
Germany, particularly the Rhine graben area, in
northern Argentina, and to alesser degree, in Africa.
He believed that landforms should be interpreted by
means of ratios which might be expected to occur
between erosional (exogenetic) processes and
diastrophic(endogenetic) processes.
Landscape was considered an expression of the phase
and rate of upliftment in relation to the rate of
degradation.
Erosional processes were held to operate according to
some worldwide laws whose rate were different in
different climates. Theselawswere:
1. Local intensity of erosion is directly related to the
steepness of the slope segment.
2. The inclination of each segment of an erosional
slopeisdetermined by thesizesof themobiledebris.
3. The largest debris size which is mobile on a slope
segment varies with the inclination of the slope. The
greater the inclination, the greater is the largest debris
size, which ismobile.
4. If the production of debris by weathering is uniform
on a slope segment, erosion will cause the segment to
retreat parallel to itself.
5. If some eroded material is allowed to collect at the
base of a retreating slope segment, a new segment
with lower inclination will develop.
Penck was of the view that most tectonic
movement began and ended slowly. The
common pattern of such movements was a
slow uplift, an accelerated uplift, a
deceleration in uplift and finally quiescence.
The slope of any region are basically similar in
gradient and their characteristics are
determined by intensity of erosion. Three
typesof slopesare-
1. Uniform slopes indicate constant intensity of
erosion, i.e., uniformdevelopment.
2. Concave slopes indicate declining intensity of
erosion, i.e., waningdevelopment.
3. Convex slopes indicate increasing intensity of
erosion, i.e., waxingdevelopment.
Increasing intensity of Erosion
This is the fiorst stage of erosion. The initial surface
(primarrumpf) is a featureless surface. As there is slow, long,
continuous uplift, the primarrumpf retained its featureless
character for alongtime.
As the rate of upliftment increased, stream incision led to
obliteration of the featureless character and started
developingnarrow valleys. Thus, altitude and relief increased.
Later on, the rateof upliftment increased tremendously which
resultedin formation of steep V-shaped valley.
Since the rate of upliftment was very high, downcutting or
vertical incision could not keep pace with the accelerated
uplift. Thus, the ridge summits and valley bottoms rose well
above sea level. The slope became convex because of
extensive downcutting in valley bottoms without any
correspondingdenudation on theupper slope.
Constant Intensity of Erosion
Phase I
There is an acceleration of uplift but this one
is not as high as compared to the previous
phase. The summit rise but at a slower speed.
Valley deepening, valley bottom uplift and
summit uplift are balanced in such a way that
therelief remainsconstant.
Phase II
The summit neither increase nor decrease, as the
lowering of the summit height is offset by uplift,
which continues even in this stage. The valley
deepening still continues at an accelerated rate
because the uplift provide the much needed
stream velocity for vertical incision but this valley
deepening is also matched by divide wasting, so
the relief in this case , too, remain constant.
As the rate of upliftment decreases, rate of valley
degradation also decreases, and the valley floor
rises.
Phase III
There is a complete cessation of upliftment.
The summit, thus, begins to lose height by
erosion and there is a gradual decline of
elevation. Since there is no upheaval to offset
the effect of down cutting, valley continues to
become deep and their floors also become
lower. But uniformdevelopment ismaintained
as there is constant intensity of erosion and
summit lowering is also as low. Hence, the
relief remainsconstant.
Declining Intensity of erosion
The upliftment of landform has completely
stopped and erosion is dominant. Thus,
declining landforms appear. The summits
continue to be eroded and lowered, however,
there is a considerable decrease in downcutting
or vertical incision of valley floors. The net result
isthat altitude aswell asrelief both are lowered.
At the same time, valley sides are retreating,
parallel to themselves.
The upper slopes maintain their angle of slope
and valley floors increase in width. The surface
fromridge crest to the stream (valley side slopes)
nowconsistsof two parts-
The upper part called boschesteilwandor gravity
slope, is relatively steep and maintains its angle
by parallel retreat, although the height is
declining.
Thelower part, called haldenhangor washslope,
is gentle and has a declining gradient. The angle
at which these slopes meet is distinct and it
mainly dependsupon the size of the material that
is being moved over them and the amount of
water available to move this material. The angle
isfairly sharp in theformof aknick.
L.C. Kings Concept- Pediplanation
(1953, 1967)
Lester CKingsmodel of landscape evolution issimilar to
Davis in that uplift is episodic and rapid in comparison
with rates of denudation, and that the overall
morphology of a landscape at any point in time is
diagnosticof itsevolutionary stagesof development.
Thedifference: modeof slopedevelopment.
King initially developed his model to account for the
landscapes of southern Africa. These are characterised
by extensive, gently inclined surfaces dotted with
inselbergs and separated by escarpments, and have
developed under predominantly arid to tropical wet dry
morphoclimaticregimes.
He envisaged the parallel retreat of a single free-
face slope unit, leavingabroad, concave pediment
sloping at an angle of 6-7 degree or less at its
base. Gradually over time, pediments coalesce to
form pediplains and this mode of landscape
development, istherefore called pediplanation.
He theorized that once pediment surfaces have
been formed, they persist with little change until
the next phase of surface uplift promotes a new
cycle of river incision and escarpment retreat,
which consumes existing pediplains and creates
newones.
Like Davis, King envisioned impulsive uplift and long
response times of landscape adjustment. He never
accepted the Davisian concave-convex slope; he
favored Pencks view of concave hillslopes and slope
replacement. On the basis of Pancks model he
conclude that the landscape assumes the form of a
seriesof nested, retreated escarpments.
King called the low gradient footslope extensions of
the steep escarpments pediments and the flat
beveled surface they leave in their retreating wake a
pediplane.
King proposed that once pediments form, that they
persist indefinitely until consumed by younger
retreating escarpments following renewed base level
fall.
References
Frank J. Pazzaglia (2003), Landscape evolution
model, Development in Quaternary Science,
Vol.1, pp. 247-272.
Siddhartha, K. (1999), The Earths Dynamic
Surface, Kisalaya Publication, N. Delhi.
Doerr, A.H. (1993), Fundamentals of Physical
Geography, IInd edition, Wm. C. Brown.
Publishers, Australia.
Dr. Mukesh Verma
(mukesh.verma@fnu.ac.fj)