State transitions in geomorphic responses to environmental change

Phillips, Jonathan D.

doi:10.1016/j.geomorph.2013.08.005

Cited by 38 publications

(28 citation statements)

References 53 publications

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“…In a fluvial setting, for instance, modifications to incision or accretion rates are less important than transitions among aggrading, degrading, and steady‐states, and related transitions in factors such as planform and valley style. A geomorphic state transition results in a qualitatively different landform, geomorphic environment, or landscape unit (Phillips, ). A change in shoreline erosion rates, for instance, would not constitute a state transition.…”

Section: Disturbances and State Transitionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Dynamically unstable systems lack resilience, but additionally in some cases the effects of perturbations not only persist, but grow over time. Phillips () gives numerous examples. A simple case is blowouts in sand dunes – once initiated, the dune form never recovers its pre‐blowout state, and the blowout size often continues to grow unstably (e.g.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Principles of geomorphic disturbance and recovery in response to storms

Phillips

Dyke

2016

Earth Surf Processes Landf

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ABSTRACT:The most important geomorphic responses to storms are qualitative changes in system state. Minor storms produce no state change or very rapid recovery to pre-storm state, and extinction events wipe out the system. In other cases disturbance results in a state change, which may be transitional (change to a previously existing state), state space expansion (change to a new state), and clock-resetting events that return the system to its initial state. Recovery pathways are much more varied than the monotonic progressions represented in classic vegetation succession and linear channel evolution models. Those linear sequential pathways are only one of several archetypal recovery pathways, which also include binary, convergent, divergent, and more complex networks. Filterdominated systems are more likely to follow linear sequential or convergent patterns, whereas amplifier-dominance is characteristic of divergent and more complex mesh or fully-connected patterns. Amplifier domination is also more likely to lead to evolutionary or state space expansion responses. Amplification and filtering in geomorphic response and recovery can be assessed using the 'Four R's' framework of response, resistance, relaxation, and recursion. High resistance and resilience, rapid relaxation times, and stable recursive feedback networks reduce or offset effects of disturbances, thus filtering their impacts. Conversely, low resistance and resilience, slow relaxation, and dynamically unstable feedbacks can exaggerate disturbances, creating disproportionately large and long-lived impacts, thereby amplifying disturbances.Unless new filter mechanisms evolve (either autogenically or anthropically), or the number of extinction or clock-resetting events increases, intensified storminess will result in more geomorphic variability. These ideas are applied to a case study of a flood on the Clark Fork River, Montana, USA.

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Section: Disturbances and State Transitionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Principles of geomorphic disturbance and recovery in response to storms

Phillips

Dyke

2016

Earth Surf Processes Landf

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“…The application of principles and techniques from network theory has grown steadily in ecology, biogeography, hydrology and geomorphology over the last two decades (Urban et al, 2009;Phillips, 2014). Particularly notable has been the adoption of concepts from graph theory, which in a landscape context, treats landscapes as a mathematical graph in which the nodes and links represent habitat patches and the connections between them (Urban and Keitt, 2001).…”

Section: Connectivity Analysesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Flooding and Surface Connectivity of Taxodium‐Nyssa Stands in a Southern Floodplain Forest Ecosystem

Kupfer

Meitzen

Gao

2014

River Research & Apps

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An understanding of the factors controlling the permanent and episodic links between the main stem of a river and the ecosystems of its alluvial floodplain is necessary for evaluating the influence of modern river processes on floodplain ecology and habitat diversity and for the successful implementation of flow regimes that meet human needs for water in a manner that sustains the ecological integrity of affected systems. In this study, we examined relationships between river hydrology and lateral hydrological connectivity, which is crucial to directing fluxes of water, material, and organisms into and across a floodplain. We did so by translating measures of river discharge for the Congaree River into high resolution maps of flood conditions for the floodplain at Congaree National Park using a 2D flood inundation model. Utilizing a graph network approach, we then analyzed the connectivity of a key wetland ecosystem, Taxodium‐Nyssa forested swamps, to the main stem river and to each other under different flows. Our results underscore that floodplain connectivity is initiated at sub‐bankfull discharges and does not depend on levee overtopping, while also clarifying that various sources of connectivity are triggered at different flow levels in specific reaches. Further, our findings demonstrate the sensitive and non‐linear response of floodplain connectivity to river flows and provide useful information to facilitate the management of flood processes in the Congaree River watershed. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

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“…Southgate, 1995;Mumby et al, 2011). Alternative landscape states can result; these vary and change through space and time as geomorphic processes respond to extreme events (Phillips, 2014;Phillips and van Dyke, 2016). A key challenge is therefore to evaluate the effects of extreme events on geomorphological processes in the context of the interdependencies between internal, non-climate and climate-related controls on geomorphic processes.…”

Section: Stormy Geomorphologymentioning

confidence: 99%

Stormy geomorphology: geomorphic contributions in an age of climate extremes

Naylor

Spencer

Lane

et al. 2016

Earth Surf Processes Landf

101

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The increasing frequency and/or severity of extreme climate events are becoming increasingly apparent over multidecadal timescales at the global scale, albeit with relatively low scientific confidence. At the regional scale, scientific confidence in the future trends of extreme event likelihood is stronger, although the trends are spatially variable. Confidence in these extreme climate risks is muddied by the confounding effects of internal landscape system dynamics and external forcing factors such as changes in land use and river and coastal engineering. Geomorphology is a critical discipline in disentangling climate change impacts from other controlling factors, thereby contributing to debates over societal adaptation to extreme events. We review four main geomorphic contributions to flood and storm science. First, we show how palaeogeomorphological and current process studies can extend the historical flood record while also unraveling the complex interactions between internal geomorphic dynamics, human impacts and changes in climate regimes. A key outcome will be improved quantification of flood probabilities and the hazard dimension of flood risk. Second, we present evidence showing how antecedent geomorphological and climate parameters can alter the risk and magnitude of landscape change caused by extreme events. Third, we show that geomorphic processes can both mediate and increase the geomorphological impacts of extreme events, influencing societal risk. Fourthly, we show the potential of managing flood and storm risk through the geomorphic system, both near-term (next 50 years) and longer-term. We recommend that key methods of managing flooding and erosion will be more effective if risk assessments include palaeodata, if geomorphological science is used to underpin nature-based management approaches, and if land-use management addresses changes in geomorphic process regimes that extreme events can trigger. We argue that adopting geomorphologically-grounded adaptation strategies will enable society to develop more resilient, less vulnerable socio-geomorphological systems fit for an age of climate extremes.

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State transitions in geomorphic responses to environmental change

Cited by 38 publications

References 53 publications

Principles of geomorphic disturbance and recovery in response to storms

Principles of geomorphic disturbance and recovery in response to storms

Flooding and Surface Connectivity of Taxodium‐Nyssa Stands in a Southern Floodplain Forest Ecosystem

Stormy geomorphology: geomorphic contributions in an age of climate extremes

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