Geomorphology of the Valdegovía valley (Basque-Cantabrian Basin, Northern Spain): an example of a sub-Mediterranean, low-mid mountainous, structurally controlled area

Abstract

A detailed geomorphological map at 1:25,000 scale is presented for the Valdegovía valley (Álava, Northern Spain), located at the central zone of the Basque-Cantabrian Basin. The map has been developed after several field surveys, with the aid of GIS techniques and high resolution digital terrain models (DTM) derived from LiDAR datasets. The high resolution LiDAR DTMs have revealed uncountable ground features and slope breaks that frequently are hidden by dense forests. Considering the tectonic control and the current sub-Mediterranean climate of the studied area, most landforms and deposits in the Valdegovía valley respond to lithostructural, gravitational, karstic, fluvial, and anthropogenic morphogenesis. We conclude that the geomorphological evolution of the Valdegovía valley has been strongly conditioned by a structural control related with two main NW-SE trending asymmetric folds.