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This paper explores illegal coca crop expansion in indigenous Amazonian communities in Peru. The ethnographic study sheds light on the historical development of these areas as frontier spaces, where the growth of illicit crops intertwines with socio-ecological transformations and gives rise to conflicts over new forms of land control, opportunities for capital accumulation, and political power dynamics. The paper argues that this expansion is shaped by dual processes: from 'below,' involving small-scale migrant farmers from the Andes, and from 'above,' primarily driven by state-led agrarian interventions. Consequently, communities experience significant tensions, as they adapt to the forces of market expansion to secure their livelihoods, while simultaneously facing risks of violence and insecurity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The ground lease is a form of land tenure where the property rights are split between the lessor (landowner) and the lessee (land user). Additional ground lease features, such as the obligation to pay ground rent, depend on factors including the legal framework and lessor requirements. Ground lease features can lead to interpretation problems for ground leaseholders and even valuers, such as misunderstanding the extent of ground rent review. This paper examines location-based differences in order to highlight ground lease variability across countries. The term 'ground lease' is effectively a catch-all term for a tenure type that can display considerable differences depending on the location. Recognition of potential ground lease pitfalls and how ground leases differ across jurisdictions is necessary in an increasingly connected world. This paper advocates for uniform international ground lease terminology that more completely explains the extent of tenure rights of each ground lease. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Terrain feature points, such as peaks, pits, and saddles, represent the macro-structure of the landform. Conventional techniques for extracting these points from digital elevation models (DEMs) often grapple with issues of inaccuracy, omission and redundancy, largely due to the problematic necessity of setting threshold values. This paper proposes an innovative approach for the automatic detection of terrain feature points based on the topological relationships of contours and the inherent constraints of terrain shape characteristics. The study provides a robust mathematical model of terrain feature points and an effective algorithm for their extraction. Comparing with manually reference data, the accuracy metrics including completeness, correctness, and quality of our extracted results demonstrate a high level, significantly surpassing those obtained through existing algorithms. This proposed approach not only avoids the spurious feature points produced by the local window method, but also prevents the omission of valid points and the creation of redundant ones. Moreover, by utilizing the contour interval as its only variable, our approach eliminates the need for various threshold settings, streamlining the extraction process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents the first digital geomorphometric atlas of Romania. It primarily includes existing international classifications of landforms, as well as land-surface variables (LSVs) derived from Forest and Buildings removed Copernicus Digital Elevation Model (FABDEM) at a resolution of 30 m. Besides the standard moving window of 3 x 3 (90 x 90 m), most LSVs were also derived in moving windows of 11 x 11 (330 x 330 m), and 27 x 27 (810 x 810 m), which represent the topographic grain values specific to the Romanian topography. Up to this point, the atlas contains 10 sets of landform classification data including the geomorphons and 24 sets of LSVs as follows: Slope, Aspect, Sin (Eastness), Cos (Northness), Profile Convexity, Plan Convexity, Longitudinal Curvature, Cross-Sectional Curvature, Minimum Profile Convexity and Multidirectional Hillshade. The data are available opensource for both interactive visualizations on the ArcGIS Online platform and for download on the Google Drive platform. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents a map of terrestrial glacial geomorphology of eleven surge-type and nonsurge- type glacier forefields in southwest and west Spitsbergen, Svalbard. Glacier forefields were mapped using a combination of field surveys and the use of an uncrewed airborne vehicle in September 2022 and satellite imagery captured in 2020, with mapping performed in ArcGIS Pro at a 1:5000 scale. Maps were constructed for glaciers in Van Kuelenfjorden and Van Mijenfjorden (southwest Spitsbergen), and in Isfjorden, Billefjorden a fjord branch of Isfjorden and St. Jonsfjorden (west Spitsbergen), to obtain a breadth of glacier types and features representative of glacial landsystems on Svalbard. The detailed landform inventory was divided into: (i) ice marginal, (ii) subglacial, (iii) glaciofluvial and glaciolacustrine, (iv) supraglacial and (v) other non-glacial and contemporary features. These detailed maps provide a geomorphological insight into the past and present characteristics of glaciers on Svalbard. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Utilising actor-network theory, this paper conducts an analysis of the grass crop in Ireland's political ecology – showing the ability of non-human agents, in the words of Bruno Latour, to 'make us do things'. In particular, it examines the mutually beneficial and extended interests of the grass crop with the dairy industry – this is well represented by the state and herein termed grass-power. This shows how Ireland is staged as a 'grass country' to a global audience, making dairy consumption appear neutral and inevitable. To date, the role of the grass crop in Ireland's political ecology has been neglected, although it is shown here to be at the centre of environmental harms. This analysis reveals the contradictions and competing aims of Irish food strategies and suggests that to build sustainable landscapes, the imaginary that grass-cover is the only legitimate form of land use must be displaced and unravelled from political interests. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, a photo elicitation methodology applied in "Strathben Parish," Scotland is utilized to assess how gentrified landscapes are produced on rural smallholdings. Analysis revealed a complex, embodied landscape which is produced on an ongoing basis with a range of human and "more-than human actants," such as wildlife, trees and landforms. Amenity migrants to Strathben Parish have actively developed their holdings to facilitate desirable sensory experiences, which embed their personal histories and future imaginaries in the physical features of their holdings. Study participants thus interact with, privilege and displace a range of actants, producing both active and passive sites of resistance to industrialization. Their narratives emphasized the protection and production of biodiversity on their land but rationalized highly consumptive lifestyles. Findings demonstrate the utility of photo elicitation for understanding how landscape changes are co-produced on amenity holdings, and the privileges and exclusionary processes associated with land ownership. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the SW flank of the Doña Juana Volcanic Complex, Colombia, the dynamic geomorphic system responds to the complex interaction between volcanic, climatic, and tectonic driving forces, where the recent landscape (last ~20 years) is being shaped as a function of denudational processes. Despite the rapid rates of landforms development, the geomorphology of this area is poorly documented. To overcome the lack of information we mapped the area using a GeoSAR DEM and an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle based DEM. This paper presents two maps, a 1:25,000 scale map and a 1:5,000 detailed map of landforms along the Humadal Creek. Detailed categorization of landforms (at 1:5,000) allowed us to identify geomorphic processes in the village of Las Mesas and rural areas that triggered hazards for the communities. The morphologic evolution interpretation of this volcanic tropical area serves as a tool for future geohazard assessment in inhabited areas with important information gaps. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents the results of geohazards mapping and evaluation their role in the modifying of the urban landscape in Poznań, Poland. Information on geohazards specific to an urban lowland area (river floods, flash floods, mass movement, wind erosion) because of increasing climate change was compiled into a geomorphological map. The most spatially widespread geohazards in Poznań include: (a) on moraine hills/uplands: mass movement, wind erosion, and flash floods (4.9% of the city area); (b) on outwash plains: mass movement and flash floods (8.6% of the city area); (c) on fluvial landforms: mass movement and river floods (9.8% of the city area); (d) within plains of various origin: flash floods (7.6% of the city area). Mass movement affecting short but numerous (and locally steep) slopes, and flash floods are the most widespread geohazards (16 and 14%, of Poznań's area, respectively). Extensive urbanisation especially the expansion of impervious surfaces increases the high risk of flash floods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper describes the anthropogenic landforms of the alluvial-coastal plain of Rapallo (Eastern Liguria, NW Italy). Since the second half of the nineteenth-century Rapallo experienced a progressive urban sprawl that became particularly intense after the Second World War and severely modified the former landforms. The identification and mapping of morphological changes was performed through a multi-temporal comparison of historical and recent maps and aerial photographs, an analysis of geo-thematic maps and urban planning documents, an interpretation of stratigraphic data from boreholes, and a field survey activity. The main anthropogenic interventions that shaped the urban landscape of Rapallo were riverbed diversions and channelization, excavations, fillings, and embankments construction along the shoreline. These elements highlight the relevant extent of the human imprint on the pristine environment. Furthermore, the identified anthropogenic geomorphological features, combined with the local physiographic and climatic features, increased flood and sea storm hazards and risks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present work contributes to the process of modernization of traditional geomorphological mapping, a fundamental tool for the assessment of the hazard degree of natural processes for the planning, of works and infrastructures. Starting from a traditional and detailed geomorphological survey and through elaborations in a GIS environment, this paper presents a multiscalar cartography model, characterized by a 'full coverage' representation of landforms. These characteristics make it possible to upscale or downscale processes and landforms and to use different information levels created in a hierarchical form. The test site for the experimentation is located on the Adriatic side of central Italy and is represented by a small catchment, about 13 km2 large. All geomorphological features and information have been organized as elements and attributes within digital geomorphological information layers, following structured on a Digital Terrain Model derived from LiDAR; this new product is here proposed also as web-browser version. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Overdeepenings are erosional landforms, cut by glaciers into bedrock in basins and valleys. Overdeepening is the glaciological and geomorphological process that produces these landforms. The overdeepening process is important because it has the potential to influence the response of ice masses to climatic changes. In this paper, we analyze topographic and bathymetric digital elevation models to examine several hundred glacial overdeepenings in Labrador, Canada. We investigate controls upon the location and depth of overdeepenings. Our analyses show that the location of overdeepenings correlate strongly with confluences of glacial valleys and, importantly, that the correlation is strongest where confluence geometry requires the speed-up of ice-flow due to change in valley cross-sectional area. Further, we find that the magnitude of ice-flow speed-up correlates with depth of overdeepenings only for confluences situated in or near major geological fault-zones. Our findings therefore support the hypothesis that overdeepening can be initiated by an increase in ice velocity. Further, we conclude that overdeepening is most efficacious where fractured bedrock enables efficient quarrying. In summary, we find that the primary control upon the location of overdeepenings arises from confluences of glacial valleys due to ice speeding up at these locations, and that the depth of overdeepenings are controlled by rock mass strength. These findings are relevant for landscape evolution modelling and may be used in model testing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Information on the nature of processes occurring in modern glaciers can be obtained through the study of diamictons and landforms that are the product of past glaciations. Macrofabric and grain size analysis of late Quaternary glacial diamictons and moraines present in several valleys of the Serra da Cabreira Mountains in northwest Portugal revealed the presence of two types of diamictons deposited in different stages and were used to re-construct the glacial paleo process history of this mountainous region. Supraglacial melt-out tills and paraglacially reworked tills by debris flows are dominant in this range. Supraglacial melt-out tills, representative of periods of glacial stability followed by recession, present girdle to transitional fabrics and coarser to medium, poorly sorted sediments. Paraglacially reworked tills by debris flows, representative of postglacial mass wasting activity, present girdle fabrics and coarser, poorly sorted sediments. These diamictons and landforms are of particular importance in the reconstruction of the glacial dynamics and history of the Serra da Cabreira Mountains due to a scarcity of chronological data based on absolute dating methods. These Atlantic mountains are also the lowest glaciated range in the Iberian Peninsula, which makes them a compelling area to investigate mountain glacial dynamics in low-elevation Atlantic ranges. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We present a field-based reconstruction of the geomorphology in the Subtropical Andean mountains of the Limarí basin, semiarid central Chile (30-31° S). Fieldwork campaigns and remote-sensing analysis served for detailed geomorphological mapping at four formerly glaciated valleys in the heads of the Combarbalá and Río Hurtado sub-basins. We identify a mosaic of glacial, periglacial, and paraglacial landforms. Glacial landforms include a massive dead-ice moraine complex, with thermokarst and debris-filled fractures suggesting former ice-cored moraine degradation. This landform is superimposed by transversal and arcuate ridges suggesting active-ice processes. Periglacial landforms such as rock glaciers, gelifluction, and protalus lobes occur in cirques and U-shaped valleys, but also on moraine deposits. Paraglacial processes are indicated by talus accumulation in those formerly glaciated slopes. The geomorphological imprint is evidence for the interaction and succession between glacial, periglacial, and paraglacial dynamics from the Late Pleistocene to the present. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Geomorphological mapping of glaciers and glacial landforms helps describe the current environment and investigate past glacial changes. Here we present the first detailed 1:80,000 glacial geomorphological map of the Vanch River basin (about 2100 km²), the western Pamirs, Tajikistan [38.6667°N, 72.0000°E]. Mapping was performed using DEM (30 m), Landsat 8 imagery (15 m), and Google Earth images (~1 m). The resultant map provides the spatial distribution of glaciers and associated erosional and depositional landforms such as cirques, glacial valleys, rock glaciers, and moraines. Morphology of the lower section of the main valley outlines the limits of Vanch Glacier in the Middle Pleistocene. Comparison with former glacier inventories indicates that the glaciers have generally been stable, but the proportion of debris-covered areas has increased since 2007. The identified 184 intact rock glaciers represent hidden water storage, providing a new basis for estimating water resources in the basin. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of the study is to reveal geomorphological characteristics and evolution of the periglacial landforms occurred on the summit of the Kaz Dağı (in Turkish) characterised with a specific mountain environment developed under the dry summer subtropical Mediterranean climate. To reach this aim, morphoclimatic processes-characteristics and soil development of the Kaz Dağı district have been evaluated. Kaz Dağı (1774 m a.s.l.), which had been called as the Mount Ida in Greek Mythology, forms a physical geographic border between Çanakkale and Balıkesir provinces. Periglacial landforms consisting of the non-sorted circles including mud circles and stony earth circles, non-sorted steps and cryoturbation terraces and block currents, are found in subalpine vegetation zone at upper boundary of Mount Ida. According to morphogenetic process analysis, on the summit of the Kaz Dağı, the dominant processes are freezing + freezing-thawing in the December-March period, freezing-thawing + weathering in the November and April months, and weat-hering in which frost is not effective in the April-November period. As for pedological processes and mineralogical characteristics of soils formed under the same climatic conditions but on different parent materials of various periglacial landforms, taxonomy of these soils was classified at the Entisol ordo described as young soils. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Jurassic is one of the most important periods generating hydrocarbon source rocks and coals in Northwest China, and the Qaidam Basin is an important petroliferous and coal-forming basin. However, a series of explorations in the Qaidam Basin targeting Jurassic source rocks have failed over the past several years. These failures were mainly caused by missing the targeted Jurassic strata, suggesting that the current understanding of the Jurassic distribution in the Qaidam Basin is still limited. Therefore, this study conducts detailed analyses of the drilling wells and seismic data in the middle segment of the northern Qaidam Basin. The seismic profiles and borehole data indicate a rifting tectonic setting with discontinuous deposition and rapid facies transition during the Jurassic. A well-preserved buried rift valley proved in the Hongnan region reveals that the Jurassic deposits are mainly restricted in the narrow rift system. Therefore, further exploration targeting the Jurassic source rocks should focus on delineating the distribution of the Jurassic rift system in the Qaidam Basin, combined with the recovery of the complex Cenozoic tectonic overprinting. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Belt of Schuppen (BoS) of Nagaland is a NE-SW trending linear zone lying adjacent to the Brahmaputra Valley of Assam in Northeast India. Geomorphic, stratigraphic and chronologic data from the Dzüdza and Chathe river valleys that cut across the BoS have been studied to understand the influence of climate on landform evolution in parts of the BoS. Fluvial landforms in the Dzüdza and Chathe river valleys evolved in four major phases bracketed between 22–17 ka (Phase IV), 13–9.0 ka (Phase III), 7–5 ka (Phase II) and 3.5–1.5 ka (Phase I), indicating multi-centennial to millennial changes in monsoon intensity. Climatically, Phase-III was dominated by valley aggradation initiated by onset of the Indian Summer Monsoon (ISM) and persisted intermittently till the early Holocene-strengthened ISM. The other phases of aggradation are attributed to transient or weak ISM. The present study suggests that fluvial aggradation was associated with enhanced precipitation and sediment supply in the BoS valley, whereas the transient and weak ISM is manifested in episodic pulses of alluvial ingression from the tributaries to the trunk valleys; along with post depositional tectonic modifications of the landforms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Focusing on Colombian engineer Miguel Triana's 1907 travelogue Por el sur de Colombia, this article discusses the role that labour, broadly understood, plays in the projects of state transformation of the Putumayo region, in the Colombian Amazon. The text analyses the role that physical effort plays in making possible the construction of infrastructural works such as roads in the Amazon space, but also in the concrete forms of land cultivation he observes in Indigenous peoples and in his own process of writing his travelogue. Theories of environmental determinism turn out to be key in Triana's understanding of labour as a way of transforming nature and bringing progress to the Colombian frontiers. The article makes clear the rhetorical process through which different forms of materiality – roads, bridges, books, cultivation – are seen as parallel forms of embodiment in the discourse of engineering. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this editorial, we highlight the ongoing role of Scottish landscapes and landforms in pushing the frontiers of physical geography research, with particular to the contributions in the Scottish Geographical Journal (previously Scottish Geographical Magazine) since its inception in the 1880s. We outline some important avenues of research during the journal's lifetime and place them in the context of future challenges that Scotland and the world face, environmentally, economically and societally. Attention is also particularly paid to the Scottish Landform Examples (SLaX) series and to its continuation under the new editorial team. We invite new physical geography research contributions to the journal 'in, of or from Scotland' and its globally important landscapes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We present a geomorphological map of the southwestern coast of Sardinia encompassing inland and offshore areas of the S’Omu e S’Orku Mesolithic site. The submerged area was documented by high-resolution multibeam bathymetry combined with Side-Scan Sonar data. The emerged coastal area was surveyed using Uncrewed Aerial Vehicle Remote Sensing and field surveys. The inland landforms were shaped by coastal, fluvial, and gravity-induced processes. Most of the submerged landforms appear be modeled in subaerial conditions during sea-level lowstands, and then sealed by the rising sea level. The coastal evolution has been characterized by the rapid cliff retreat facilitated intense linear erosion of watercourses, by debris flows, rockfalls and toppling. Geomorphological evidences of cliff retreat due to landslide was supported by a simplified analytic hydraulic model of the wavecliff interaction. These processes and the sea level rise canceled any possible Mesolithic settlement along the coast. The survival of the S’Omu e S’Orku site is only due to a protected morphological position and to the distance from the Early Holocene coastline. The dearth of coastal Early Holocene prehistoric sites is likely the outcome of the presented coastal dynamics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Badlands are specific landforms characterized by intense denudation processes. Their occurrence is mainly associated with clay-like materials and semi-arid and Mediterranean climates. This study presents the badland inventory for the Paleogene Pazin Basin located on the Istrian peninsula in Croatia. A total of 5,381 badland polygons, with a total area of 10.25 km², were manually outlined, based on the visual interpretation of orthophotos at a scale of 1:5,000. The badlands in Istria are represented as small and isolated landforms and are exclusively associated with flysch and flysch-like materials, which cover a significant part of the study area (46%). The analysis of badland inventory shows that badlands are spatially not equally distributed but that their abundance is increasing from NW to SE part of the analyzed area. Additionally, the results of the spatial analysis indicate the positive relationship between badland occurrence and relative relief, which is presented via the relief-badland index. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Detailed glacial geomorphological maps are valuable for identifying target sites for palaeoglaciological reconstructions and thus for palaeoclimate inferences. In this study, we present the first detailed glacial geomorphological mapping of the landform assemblages produced by the former glaciers in the Notsarula (42°45′ 44′′N 43°38′ 29′′E) and Chanchakhi (42°42′ 5′′N 43°40′ 42′′E) river valleys, Georgian Caucasus. Our goal is to create a high)resolution (1:33,000 scale) glacial geomorphological map of this area (237 km2 ) and provide a detailed and accurate distribution of glacier-related features (see Main Map). Several field investigations between 2010 and 2022 along with detailed remote sensing surveys have been conducted for this glacial geomorphological mapping. The mapped landforms indicate multiple readvance or stillstands of valley glaciers across the study area. The largest and complex glacier body likely existed in the Bubistskali River gorge (42°43′ 16′′N 43°43′ 32′′E). Well-preserved moraine landforms in this valley suggest at least five large and several relatively small glacier readvances or stillstands occurred during the Late Quaternary. The simple-valley-type (without branches) glaciers were also probably present in other tributary valleys of the Chanchakhi River basin at that time. This map can be used for further geomorphological investigation as well as to support future geochronological work in the Greater Caucasus. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We present the first extensive high-resolution glacial geomorphic map west of the Andean Cordillera in southernmost Chile (52.8–53.1°S, 73.0–73.9°W). The map extends over 1565 km² and is based on high-resolution satellite images and aerial photographs. At selected locations, the remotely mapped geomorphology was corroborated by field observations. The study area is dominated by glacial erosional landforms (77%) over depositional landforms (23%), with published submarine depositional landforms having been included (e.g. moraines). Glacial drift, kettle kame topography and lateral and frontal moraines form the primary depositional landforms and sediment associations. Glacial cirques, wide U-shaped valleys, whalebacks, roches moutonnées and scoured bedrock characterize most of the mapped area. The spatial distribution of whalebacks and roches moutonnées in the study area indicates a lack of lithological control on their formation and a warm-based, dynamic ice velocity and thickness regime during Patagonian Ice Sheet cover and retreat during the last glacial cycle. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research presents a set of geomorphological and geoheritage evidence from the Piana Crixia Natural Park, located in the northwest part of Italy. The Natural Park, which covers an area of just under 8 km2, was established for the conservation and enhancement of two geosites: the Piana Crixia mushroom, a 15 m high earth pyramid shaped in conglomerates representing an example of runoff erosion, and badlands landforms that crop out in the area, representing a regional uniqueness and characterize a landscape defined the ‘Langhe of Liguria’. The methodology includes bibliographic research, aerial photographs, fieldwork and analysis of the data provided by the Park’s archives. The main maps were realized by combining lithological and geomorphological data with geoheritage elements and information about hiking and tourism. The 1:10,000 map represents the main area of the Piana Crixia Natural Park, while the 1:3000 map was designed to characterize the Piana Crixia mushroom. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Along the northern littoral of the Iberian Peninsula, from Cuerres (Asturias) to Oyambre (Cantabria) there are caves, such as El Pindal (World Heritage List). Two geomorphologic maps have been prepared: a general scaled 1:25000, and a detail one of the cave, with erosional and depositional landforms geomorphologic units. A relative Quaternary chronology for the depositional landforms, uses colour spots. Marine morphologies suitable for determining past sea-level positions were surveyed to identify the elevation of past high-stands and reconstructing paleo-shorelines. As a result, the study of seven erosional surfaces (rasas) in quartzites and six on limestones led to reconstructing a general sequence between 275–120 m and 90–1 m above sea level (a.s.l.) respectively. Around the El Pindal cave there are four rasas cut on quartzites (171–160 m) and four cut on limestone (65–32 m). Other additional indicators of paleoshorelines are: 24–25 m entrance to the El Pindal cave, 20–21 m lower Pindal, 15–17 m marine terrace, 9–10 m shelter, 2–3 m notches and 0– 1 m present rasa.Considering the elevation rates for the various rasas, an estimated value of 0.066 mm/y as the most probable, it is concluded that the beginning of Quaternary lays at 172 m a.s.l. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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With the successful launch of China's high spatial resolution satellite Gaofen-2 (GF-2), the use of high spatial resolution satellite images for land change detection has high research potential. Based on the images from GF-2, this study combines principal component analysis and the spectral feature change method to identify different land changes in the form of different coloured patches. Then, three decision tree classification models are constructed to automatically detect the change, which includes information on the increase in the number of airports and buildings and increased or decreased vegetation. Further, through Quick Bird images for identical regions in the same periods, a sample of 2624 pixels is selected using a stratified random sampling method to verify the accuracy of the results indicating a change. The results show that the overall accuracy of the extracted information on land change was 98.21%, and the Kappa coefficient was 0.9604. Therefore, the method for land change detection and extraction of land change information used in this study is proven to be effective. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The importance of sufficient soil scarification to ensure the regeneration of Scots pine on sub-dry and more fertile sites has been emphasized in many studies. Here we aimed to study, how site preparation intensity affects the early success of natural regeneration and sowing (bare seeds and seed pellets) of Scots pine with or without the reindeer grazing. The study area was located in northern Finland and Sweden where five site preparation methods were compared: unprepared control, logging machine tracks, Huminmix (mixing the mineral soil and organic layer), disc trenching and intensive disc trenching. In each of these we used direct seeding, seed pellets and natural regeneration. Results revealed that even the lightest site preparation methods can provide sufficient regeneration results while the reindeer grazing limits the optimal regeneration result. Huminmix and even the track of the logging machine could provide satisfactory regeneration results both in direct seeding and natural regeneration. This could facilitate the coexistence of forest management, reindeer herding and other land use forms in the same stands and area. The use of seed pellets needs further research, but it may have potential due to lower consumption of seeds and less need for site preparation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Relief shading is designed to vary the brightness of terrain elements on a two-dimensional map to create a three-dimensional effect. One concern is how this layer can be generalized for use in multi-scale mapping. We propose a methodology that calculates relief shading from slope and aspect vectors, as these layers allow map users to recognize characteristics of the terrain and show consistent trends in spatial autocorrelation with generalization. We adjust the orientation of surface vectors with a mean filter to preserve the structural terrain elements while eliminating landforms of finer detail. To demonstrate its use, we show two examples of generalizing detailed relief shading and compare results to relief shading of the next coarser scale of DEM data available. The generalized maps remove or smooth out minor landforms while preserving more prominent landforms and eliminate issues of data gaps or interpolated data in lower resolution datasets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There are not fixed conditions that make potential agricultural frontiers attractive to capital: different spaces and strategies are chosen in relation to previous failed experiments, including those strongly contested by social movements. Socio-environmental contestations can also inadvertently result in negative spillovers, or a kind of indirect land use change. I propose a concept of redirected land use and control change for cases with strategic adaptations by promoters of frontiers. I suggest three dimensions of adaptations – across spaces, political-administrative regimes and in forms of land appropriation – to apprehend the multi-scale politics of land grabbing, through the case of Matopiba in Brazil. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A systematic mapping approach characterizes Dartmoor periglacial landform signatures using the geomorphology of nine summit areas displaying well developed tor and blockfield landforms. This combines manual vectorisation with automatic classification and surface boulder identification, using spectral signatures to reveal patterns and distribution. Tors were classified using a three-fold scheme: T0 - summits with no tors; T1 - summits with castellated and high relief tors; T2 - summits with subdued or low relief tors. Clitter (blockfield and blockstream) features identified by automated mapping include boulder lobes and stripes and boulder-fronted lobes and terraces, arranged according to distance downslope from parent tors. This zonation of periglacial landforms is proposed as a landsystem signature for areas exposed to periglacial and permafrost processes for significant time during the Quaternary. It represents a process-form regime in which cold climate processes, acting on partially deeply weathered and pneumatolysised granite, produce castellated tors, cryoplanation benches and autochthonous blockfield (clitter), and permafrost creep develops boulder lobes that elongate and evolve downslope as allochthonous blockslopes with boulder stripes and boulder-fronted lobes and terraces. This demonstrates that automated mapping can be applied to areas of upland periglacial landforms to rapidly and systematically compile quantifiable patterns of landform assemblages. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Altiplanation (cryoplanation) terraces are conspicuous and widespread elements of upland landscapes in Alaska's interior. They occur in staircase-like series, primarily along divides in ridge-crest positions, and as summit platforms. Flanks (side slopes) consist of a steep upper section composed of coarse clastic debris and amorphous solifluction forms, grading through a break in slope (the 'solischrund') to a gentler lower section (cryopediment) dominated by well-defined solifluction lobes and low-order hillslope hydrological networks. An individual terrace unit consists of a steep scarp (riser) and a subjacent gently inclined tread (platform). A sequential group or series of adjacent terrace units, descending from a summit platform along ridge crests, are referred to collectively as an altiplanorium. Altiplanation terraces are a prominent feature of the altitudinal zonal arrangement of landscape phenomena in interior Alaska, and are confined to the upland periglacial zone between 915 and 1675 m.a.s.l. They are positioned below the contemporary snowline. Three study areas are given detailed verbal, cartographic, and photographic description. These areas (Mount Fairplay, High Valley/Denali Mountain, and Goodpaster Uplands) could serve as type localities for altiplanation landform assemblages. An appendix identifies the locations of many other areas in the Alaskan interior containing well-developed altiplanation landforms, and demonstrates the widespread geographic distribution of these landforms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We present a geomorphological map of the Cilo Mountain range located in southeast Turkey that illustrates the recent evolution of the second-most glacierized area of Turkey. The map was produced by the manual delineating of landforms from highresolution satellite imagery (Pleiades and Google EarthTM images). Cilo Mountain glaciation played a crucial role in the evolution of the local physical landscape and even today glaciers are significant features. After the termination of Little Ice Age, deglaciation promoted the onset of multiple and intense surface processes; widespread slope instabilities, due to permafrost melting and frost weathering processes, are still the most active processes. Such processes are further promoted by the scarcity of vegetation. The occurrence of several proglacial lakes significantly contributes to the reduction of sediment output from glaciated watersheds, influencing the evolution of proglacial plains and resulting in a variety of landforms that we identified and described in this work. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Landform classification, which is a key topic of geography, is of great significance to a wide range of fields including human construction, geological structure research, environmental governance, etc. Previous studies of landform classification generally paid attention to the topographic or texture information, whilst the watershed spatial structure has not been used. This study developed a new landform classification method based on watershed geospatial structure. Via abstracting the landform into the internal and marginal structure, we adopted the gully weighted complex network (GWCN) and watershed boundary profile (WBP) to simulate the watershed geospatial structure. Introducing various indices to quantitatively depict the watershed geospatial structure, we conducted the landform classification on the Northern Shaanxi of Loess Plateau with a watershed-based strategy and established the classification map. The classified landform distribution has significant spatial aggregation and clear regional boundaries. Classification accuracy reached 89% and the kappa coefficient reached 0.87%. Besides, the proposed method has a positive response to some similar and complex landforms. In general, the present study first utilized the watershed geospatial structure to conduct landform classification and is an efficient landform classification method with well accuracy and universality, offering additional insights for landform classification and mapping. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Based on long-lasting multidisciplinary and multitemporal investigations, in 2016 the first geomorphological map of the central area of Rome was presented. It introduced innovative solutions for cartographic restitution of urban landforms. Under this work, the urban geomorphological analysis delved deeper, because the study focused on the smaller area of the Urbs, the ancient city centre that has been modified by human activities over millennia. The main goal of the new study was to verify if the 1:5000 scale survey could allow to improve the legend symbols, in order to better represent landforms from natural and anthropogenic processes in urban environment. Since the map scale was doubled compared with the previous and consequently the map area available was four times bigger, we were able to provide much more details. Moreover, results better highlighted the applicative significance of urban geomorphological maps as complementary tool for the assessment of natural hazards and risks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The interaction between geomorphological processes and anthropogenic activities produces an impressive association of geomorphological and archaeological heritage in urban contexts. We analyzed the urban geomorphology and the geo- and cultural heritage in the town of Pavia (N Italy). The city is located in a strategic position, on a series of fluvial terraces where the Romans founded a colony, probably in the place of an Iron Age Gaul settlement. In Medieval Times and the Modern Era, Pavia sprawled outside the Roman walls, creating new urban areas and modifying the landscape. Geomorphological and GIS-spatial analyses integrated with anthropic landform surveying, archaeological data and historical cartography were performed. This multi-disciplinary approach allowed an investigation into how urban development was firstly adapted and then superimposed onto fluvial landforms. As a result, a flexible geocultural itinerary is proposed for linking geoheritage with cultural heritage, and for disseminating urban geomorphology key-concepts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This work presents the geomorphological features associated with the anthropic morphogenesis of the Bisagno Stream catchment, combined with the geo-hydrological hazards associated with landslides and floods. This catchment is internationally known for its recurring high-magnitude floods and its geo-hydrological hazards associated with the large and widespread presence of elements exposed at risks. It experienced severe morphological changes due to anthropogenic interventions related to urban sprawl and agriculture. Anthropogenic modifications to the former landscape have been particularly widespread and pervasive over the coastline, the floodplain, and the slopes. They include a general alteration of the pristine landforms, excavation and landfill forms, channelization and culvert of riverbeds, and terraced slopes. The 1:20,000 scale map allows to assess the relationships existing among structures and infrastructures, anthropogenic landforms, and landslides and flood-prone areas. Thus, this tool provides relevant information for land-use planning and land management, in particular under the perspective of geo-hydrological hazards mitigation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]