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knickzone. Increased erosion at the top and decreased erosion at the bottom of the original knickzone
causes the knickzone to migrate upstream. Bedrock incision by a migrating knickpoint is characterized
by a low rate of incision at a point in the stream for an extended period of time interrupted by a short
period of high-rate incision when the knickpoint passes by (Anderson et al., 2010).
between 50-150 meters, sandwiched between two low-gradient stretches, between 0-50 and 150-180, as
described by Anderson et al. (2010).
Large sand bars, or sediment piles, around 180 meters marks the change from steep gradient to
shallow gradient. The presence of sediment before the 0 meter mark shows that the gradient before the
knickpoint is also shallow. The steep stretch of the stream between 0 and 180 meters was largely clear of
sediment. The streambed here was composed of mostly visible bedrock, though small amounts of
sediment - an amount necessary for erosion - was present.
Evidence for incision into the bedrock was also present. Knickzone migration is a method of
bedrock incision, of valley creation. The two stream cross sections below describe the downcutting of the
stream.
At 0 meters, the top of our survey, there exists paired terraces and paired floodplains (T 1 and F1). At 116
meters, toward the end of our survey, the original floodplain (F 1) has become a terrace (T2). The
downcutting of the stream created a second pair of floodplains (F 2); the stream has incised into the
bedrock. The valley profile above the knickzone was far broader than at and below the knickzone, with
larger floodplains and terraces much further away from the stream. This survey is in accordance with the
findings of Zaprowski et al. (2001).
Conclusions
Our findings are quite consistent with the knickpoint migration model. The cross sections reveal
that less incision has occurred at the top of our surveyed stream section - above the knickzone - than at
the bottom - where the knickzone has already passed. As the knickpoint continues to migrate upward,
more sediment will be deposited at the downstream part of the surveyed section, more incision will occur
towards the upstream section, and sediment will be removed from the upstream section and brought
downstream as the streambed gradient steepens around the 0 meter mark. Our survey revealed that
knickpoint migration is an active mechanism of streambed incision in small, mixed bedrock-alluvial
channels.
References
Anderson, R. S., & Anderson, S. P. (2010). Geomorphology: The mechanics and chemistry of
landscapes. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Castillo, M., Bishop, P., & Jansen, J. D. (2013, 12). Knickpoint retreat and transient bedrock channel
morphology triggered by base-level fall in small bedrock river catchments: The case of the Isle
of Jura, Scotland. Geomorphology,180-181, 1-9. doi:10.1016/j.geomorph.2012.08.023
Zaprowski, B. J., Evenson, E. B., Pazzaglia, F. J., & Epstein, J. B. (2001, 12). Knickzone propagation
in the Black Hills and northern High Plains: A different perspective on the late Cenozoic
exhumation of the Laramide Rocky Mountains.Geology, 29(6), 547.
doi:10.1130/0091-7613(2001)0292.0.CO;2