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Are calanco landforms similar to river basins?
N A Caraballo-Arias1, V Ferro2
1Department of Agricultural and Forestry Sciences, University of Palermo, Viale delle Scienze, 90128 Palermo, Italy.
The Science of the Total Environment
|June 20, 2017
Summary
This study quantitatively demonstrates that Sicilian badlands (calanchi) share morphological similarities with river basins, establishing them as valid models for landscape evolution research. These findings confirm geometric and network similarities, aiding in understanding fluvial processes at different scales.
Area of Science:
- Geomorphology
- Landscape Evolution
- Hydrology
Background:
- Badlands have been historically viewed as natural laboratories for studying landscape evolution due to their resemblance to larger fluvial systems.
- However, scientific evidence validating badlands as accurate models for river basin prototypes under specific hydrological conditions has been lacking.
- This research addresses this gap by investigating the morphological similarity between calanchi (Sicilian badlands) and river systems.
Purpose of the Study:
- To quantitatively assess the morphological similarity between calanchi and river systems.
- To determine if dimensionless groups commonly used for river basins can be applied to calanchi.
- To evaluate the applicability of established geomorphological laws (Hack's, Horton's, Melton's) to calanchi.
Main Methods:
- Measurements were conducted on 45 Sicilian calanchi, treated as small-scale hydrographic units.
- Geomorphological similarity was analyzed by identifying and calculating dimensionless groups representing drainage basin shape, stream network, and relief properties.
- Comparison of these dimensionless groups and scale ratios between calanchi and literature-sourced river basin data.
Main Results:
- Calanchi and river basins exhibit geometric similarity in shape (parameters Rf and Re) with a scale factor near 1.
- Similarities were found in bifurcation and length ratios (λ=1), indicating comparable stream network structures.
- The Melton number was lower in calanchi than in river basins, with a scale ratio of 0.52–0.78, and mean relief ratios were similar (λ=1.13).
- Calanchi display active geomorphic processes, suggesting a more juvenile landscape stage compared to river basins.
Conclusions:
- Quantitative morphological similarity between calanchi and river basins can be established using standard dimensionless groups.
- Calanchi serve as valid, small-scale analogues for studying landscape evolution processes observed in larger river systems.
- The findings support the use of calanchi as field laboratories for understanding fluvial geomorphology across different scales.
Keywords:
Basin shape similarityCalanchi badlandsDrainage network similarityMorphological similarityMorphometric propertiesRelief similarityMore Related Videos
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