Colluvium is the name for loose bodies of sediment that have been deposited or built up at the bottom of a low grade slope or against a barrier on that slope, transported by gravity. Sediment is any particulate matter that can be transported by fluid flow and which eventually is deposited as a layer of solid particles on the bed or bottom of a body of Gravitation is a natural Phenomenon by which objects with Mass attract one another The deposits that collect at the foot of a steep slope or cliff are also known by the same name. Colluvium often interfingers with alluvium (deposits transported downslope by water). Alluvium (from the Latin, alluvius, from alluere, "to wash against" is Soil or Sediments deposited by a river or other running Coarse deposits due to rockfall at a cliff base are called talus (scree) and if lithified are talus breccias. Scree, also called talus and detritic cone, is a term given to broken rock that appears at the bottom of Crags mountain Cliffs or Breccia (ˈbrɛtʃiə ˈbrɛʃiə breach is a rock composed of angular fragments of several Minerals or rocks in a matrix, that is a cementing material Avalanches, mudslides and landslides are processes that deposit colluvium. This article refers to the natural event For other uses see Avalanche (disambiguation An avalanche is an abrupt and rapid flow of snow often Mudslide redirects here it is also the name of a cocktail. A mudflow or mudslide is the most rapid (up to 80 km/h / 50 mph A landslide is a geological phenomenon which includes a wide range of ground movement such as rock falls deep failure of slopes and shallow debris flows which can occur This build-up process is called colluviation.
Colluvium normally forms humps at the base of mountains or fan-shaped deposits similar in shape to alluvial fans that cover former ground surfaces. An alluvial fan is a fan -shaped deposit formed where a fast flowing Stream flattens slows and spreads typically at the exit of a Canyon onto This process is an important phenomenon in the fields of archaeology and soil science. Archaeology, archeology, or archæology (from Greek grc ἀρχαιολογία archaiologia – grc ἀρχαῖος archaīos Soil science is the study of Soil as a Natural resource on the surface of the Earth including soil formation, classification and mapping
Many colluvial soils tend to have a fragipan associated with them that are a brittle subsoil layer typically high in clay. A fragipan is a diagnostic horizon in USDA soil taxonomy. They are altered subsurface soil layers that restrict water flow and root penetration Clay is a naturally occurring material composed primarily of fine-grained Minerals which show plasticity through a variable range of Water content, and One theory of fragipan formation is the smearing of soil during the colluvial process causing the clays to seal the surface between the moving portion of soil and the stationary soil on which it slides. Ancient sites can be preserved beneath colluvium if later changes in the landscape such as deforestation encourage a downward movement of material. An archaeological site is a place (or group of physical sites in which evidence of past activity is preserved (either Prehistoric or historic or contemporary and Deforestation is the conversion of Forested areas to non-forest land for use such as Arable land, Pasture, urban use logged area or wasteland
Sources
- Thomas Madigan, "The Geology of the MNRRA Corridor", p. 26, National Park Service, Retrieved July 23, 2007
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