Drainage basin response to climate change in the Pisco valley, Peru

Steffen, Damian; Schlunegger, Fritz; Preusser, Frank

doi:10.1130/g25475a.1

Cited by 59 publications

(104 citation statements)

References 24 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…Minchin, 47.8-36 ka and Tauca, 26-14.9 ka;Baker et al, 2001a, b;Fritz et al, 2004;Placzek et al, 2006). As documented by Steffen et al (2009), regolith is shed over ca. 10-15 kyr timescales from the hillslopes as debris flows during these pluvial periods.…”

Section: Settingmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…A series of cut-fill terraces and debris flow deposits fill the widening channel to within ∼ 40 km from the coast (see, e.g., Steffen et al, 2009;Bekaddour et al, 2014). These valley fills consist of both fluvial conglomerates and hillslopederived debris flow breccias, which could indicate phases of landsliding (see, e.g., McPhillips et al, 2014).…”

Section: Settingmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The terraces were correlated based on elevation and composition. Steffen et al (2009) dated the late Quaternary terraces, which are abundant in the lower reaches downstream of the knickzone from ∼ 40 to 120 km downstream. The ages of the terrace accumulation correspond with well-known wet periods in the western Andes (e.g.…”

Section: Settingmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The fluvial cut and fill terrace systems, which are common in these settings, are typically attributed to this climate variability (Bookhagen et al, 2006;Steffen et al, 2009). Using a climate-dependent regolith production algorithm coupled with simple sediment transport laws (see, e.g., Tucker and Slingerland, 1997), we investigate the effects of climate change in the form of precipitation variation on the hillslope system and propose that hillslope regolith production and stripping may control cut and fill sequences during the late Quaternary.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 3 more Smart Citations

On the potential for regolith control of fluvial terrace formation in semi-arid escarpments

2016

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Abstract. Cut-fill terraces occur throughout the western Andes, where they have been associated with pluvial episodes on the Altiplano. The mechanism relating increased rainfall to sedimentation is, however, not well understood. Here, we apply a hillslope sediment model and reported cosmogenic nuclide concentrations in terraces to examine terrace formation in semi-arid escarpment environments. We focus on the Pisco river system in western Peru in order to determine probable hillslope processes and sediment transport conditions during phases of terrace formation. Specifically, we model steady-state and transient hillslope responses to increased precipitation rates. The measured terrace distribution and sediment agree with the transient predictions, suggesting strong climatic control on the cut-fill sequences in western Peru primarily through large variations in sediment load. Our model suggests that the ultimate control for these terraces is the availability of sediment on the hillslopes, with hillslope stripping supplying large sediment loads early in wet periods. At the Pisco river, this is manifest as an approximately 4-fold increase in erosion rates during pluvial periods. We suggest that this mechanism may also control terrace occurrence other semi-arid escarpment settings.

show abstract

Section: Settingmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Settingmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Settingmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

On the potential for regolith control of fluvial terrace formation in semi-arid escarpments

2016

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…3d ). Th e orbital scale climate variations, which potentially shaped glacial and fl uvial segments in the east, are recorded only by cut-and-fi ll terraces on the western margin 31 . Concavity values do not correlate with rainfall along the entire western margin ( Fig.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Migrating deformation in the Central Andes from enhanced orographic rainfall

Norton

Schlunegger

2011

Nat Commun

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Landscape response to Pleistocene-Holocene precipitation change in the Western Cordillera, Peru:¹⁰Be concentrations in modern sediments and terrace fills

McPhillips

Bierman

Crocker

et al. 2013

J. Geophys. Res. Earth Surf.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The landscape response to climate change is frequently investigated with models because natural experiments on geologic timescales are rare. In Quebrada Veladera, in the western Andes Mountains, the formation of alluvial terraces during periods of high precipitation presents opportunities for such an experiment. We compare drainage‐average erosion rates during Pleistocene terrace deposition with Holocene rates, using cosmogenic 10Be samples for seven pairs of quartz sand taken from the trunk and tributaries of Quebrada Veladera and adjacent terraces. Each pair consists of sediment collected from the modern channel and excavated from an adjacent fill terrace. The terrace fill was deposited at ~16 ka and preserved an isotopic record of paleoerosion rates in the Late Pleistocene. Modern sands yield 10Be concentrations between 1.68 × 105 and 2.28 × 105 atoms/g, corresponding to Holocene erosion rates between 43 ± 3 and 58 ± 4 mm/kyr. The 10Be concentrations in terrace sands range from 9.46 × 104 to 3.73 × 105 atoms/g, corresponding to paleoerosion rates from 27 ± 2 to 103 ± 8 mm/kyr. Smaller, upstream tributaries show a substantial decline in erosion rate following the transition from a wet to dry climate, but larger drainage areas show no change. We interpret this trend to indicate that the wetter climate drove landscape dissection, which ceased with the return to dry conditions. As channel heads propagated upslope, erosion accelerated in low‐order drainages before higher‐order ones. This contrast disappeared when the drainage network ceased to expand; at that point, erosion rates became spatially uniform, consistent with the uniformity of modern hillslope gradients.

show abstract

Drainage basin response to climate change in the Pisco valley, Peru

Cited by 59 publications

References 24 publications

On the potential for regolith control of fluvial terrace formation in semi-arid escarpments

On the potential for regolith control of fluvial terrace formation in semi-arid escarpments

Migrating deformation in the Central Andes from enhanced orographic rainfall

Landscape response to Pleistocene-Holocene precipitation change in the Western Cordillera, Peru:¹⁰Be concentrations in modern sediments and terrace fills

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About

Drainage basin response to climate change in the Pisco valley, Peru

Cited by 59 publications

References 24 publications

On the potential for regolith control of fluvial terrace formation in semi-arid escarpments

On the potential for regolith control of fluvial terrace formation in semi-arid escarpments

Migrating deformation in the Central Andes from enhanced orographic rainfall

Landscape response to Pleistocene-Holocene precipitation change in the Western Cordillera, Peru:10Be concentrations in modern sediments and terrace fills

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About

Landscape response to Pleistocene-Holocene precipitation change in the Western Cordillera, Peru:¹⁰Be concentrations in modern sediments and terrace fills