CSB IAS ACADEMY

World Geography
Land Forms

- Running water is the most important exogenetic processes. The Landforms

formed, either due to erosion or due to deposition are called fluvial land forms.
- The erosional work of the rivers is performed by two ways. One is through
chemical erosion and other is through mechanical erosion.
- Solution involves the dissolution of soluble materials through the processes of
disintegration and decomposition of carbonate rocks.
- Abrasion involves the removal of loosened materials of the rocks of valley walls
and valley floors with the help of erosional tools (boulders, pebbles, cobbles)
- Attrition is the mechanical tear and wear of the erosional tools in themselves.
These tools while moving with water Collide against each other and thus
fragmented into smaller and finer pieces in the transit.
- Hydraulic action involves the breakdown of the rocks of valley sides due to the
impact of water currents of Channel.
Erosional land forms of running water
- River valleys carved out by the Running water (Rivers) are Significant erosional
land forms.
- The valley formed in the youthful stage of fluvial cycle of erosion. The valley is
very deep and narrow, both the valley sides meets together at the valley floor
and thus water always touches the valley sides. V shaped valleys are the result
of accelerated Rate of down cutting.
- Gorges represent very deep and narrow valleys having very steep valley side
slopes.
- Canyon is the extended of form of a very deep and narrow valley for long
distance.
- The steep fall of river water through sudden descent or abrupt break in
longitudinal profile of a river is called waterfall.
- The Kettle-like small circular depressions carved out in the rocky river beds by
valley incision are called pot holes which are normally of cylindrical shape.
- The narrow flat surfaces on either side of the river valleys are called river terraces
which represent the level of former valley floors and the remnants of former
food plains.
- Meander refers to the bends of longitudinal courses of the rivers. The bends of
sinous rivers have been named meanders on the basic of meander river of Asia
Minor because it flows through numerous bends.
- The lakes formed due to impounding of water in the abandoned meander loops
are called ox-bow lakes.
- Peneplains are low featureless plains having undulating surface and remnants
of convexo concave residual hills.
Depositional land forms of running water
- The fan shaped depositional features at the foot hills are called alluvial fans. The
shape of Alluvial fans is usually semi-circular or arcuate.
- Alluvial cones differ from alluvial fans in terms of slope as the former have
steeper slopes than the alluvial fan.
- The narrow belt of ridges of low height built by the spill water of the stream on
its either bank is called natural levee or natural embankment.
- The depositional feature of almost triangular shape at the mouth of a river
debouching either in lake or sea is called delta on the basis of the shape of Greek
letter “∆”.
Ground water and karst Topography
- The water present in the pore spaces of regolith [the layer of loose and
unconsolidated materials lying over the bedrocks is called regolith] and bed rocks
[rocks which have not been weathered and eroded] below the ground surface is
called ground water.
- The ground water is also called subsurface water or underground water.
- Solutional landforms produced by chemical weathering and erosion of carbonate
rocks mainly limestones and dolomites by surface and subsurface water [ground
water] are called karst topography on the basis of such land forms of karst region
of earstwhile Yugoslavia having crystalline limestones.
Erosional land forms of Ground water
- The highly corrugated and rough surface of limestones characterized by low
ridges and pinnacles, narrow clefts and numerous solution holes is called lappies.
These landforms are called karren In Germany and bogaz in ear while Yugoslavia.
- Sink holes are the funnel shaped or cylinder-shaped solution holes developed
due to dissolution of limestones.
- The enlarged form of sinkholes due to coalescence of sink holes in limestone
areas is called swallow hole.
- The enlarged forms of swallow holes due to continuous solution of carbonate
rocks or large depressions formed due to coalescence of a few swallow holes in
the Karst regions are called dolines.
- Most extensive depressions [larger than dolines] in limestone regions are called
Poljes.
- The dolines filled with water are called karst lakes, which are formed when the
floors of dolines are plugged due to deposition of clay, with the result water
cannot percolate downward.

Depositional landforms of ground water.

- All types of deposits of calcite in limestone caves are collectively called

speleothem.
- The columns of dripstones having calcite hanging from the ceiling of limestone
caves are called stalactites.
- The vertical columns of dripstones having calcite growing upward from the floor
of limestone cave are known as stalagmite.
- Banded calcareous deposits in lime stone caves are called travertine, where-as
the calcareous deposits, softer than travertine, at the mouth of cave are called
tufa or caletufa.
- Caves in limestone areas formed by chemical erosion of carbonate rocks by
ground water are called lime stone caves.

Sea waves and coastal landform:

- The work of sea water is performed by several marine agents like sea waves,
oceanic currents, tidal waves and tsunamis but the sea waves are most
powerful and effective erosive agent of coastal areas.
 - Waves are generated due to friction on water surface caused by blowing
winds.
- Sea shore represents the zone of land between high tide water and low tide
water.
- The shoreline is the line of demarcation between land and water. It
fluctuates from moment to moment influenced by waves and tides.

Erosional land forms of sea water

- Significant coastal features formed due to marine erosion by sea waves
include cliffs, caves, indented coastline, stacks, chimney, wave cut
platform.
- Steep rocky coast rising almost vertically above sea water is called sea cliff.
- Rock cut surfaces in front of cliffs are called wave cut platform or shore
platform which are slightly concave upward.
- Sea caves are formed along the coast due to gradual erosion of weak and
strongly jointed rocks by up rushing breaker waves.
- The holes formed due to breaking of the roof of a coastal cave by powerful
storm waves are called natural chimneys.
- The isolated remnant of headland projecting well above sea level is called
stack.

Depositional landform of Sea waves.

- Significant depositional land forms developed by sea waves include

beaches, bars and barriers, tombolo, winged headlands, wave built plat
form, sabkha etc.
- Temporary or short-lived deposits of marine sediments consisting of sands,
shingle, cobbles, pebbles etc. on the seashore are called beaches.
- The ridges of sand formed by sedimentation through sea waves parallel to
the shoreline are called bars and the bars of larger dimension are called
barriers.
- There are different form of sand bars and barriers if the bars are formed in
such a way that they are parallel to the coast but are not attached to the
land, they are called off shore (or) long shore bars
- If the sand bars are formed in such a way that their one end is attached to
the land while the other end projects or opens out towards the sea, they
are called spits.
- The spits, when bent by powerful sea waves, as some the shape of a hook.
Such curved spits are called hooked spits or simply hooks.
- A bar connecting two headlands or a headland and an island is called
tombolo, which acts as a bridge between the coast and an island.
- The depositional coastal areas having flat surface in the dry tropical zones
are called subkha which are flat but barren coastal lands.
- Wave built platform is that, seaward part of the continental shelves which
have thick terrigenous deposits.
- The coastal headland having bars of pebbles and cobbles on its either side
just like wing is called winged headland.