Shingle beach
A shingle beach is a beach which is armoured with pebbles or small- to medium-sized cobbles. Typically, the stone composition may grade from characteristic sizes ranging from two to 200 mm diameter.
While this beach landform is most commonly associated[by whom?] with Western Europe, examples are found in Bahrain, North America and in a number of other world regions, such as the east coast of New Zealand's South Island, where they are associated with the shingle fans of braided rivers.
The ecosystems formed by this unique association of rock and sand allow colonization by a variety of rare and endangered species.[1]
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[edit] Formation
Shingle beaches are typically steep, because the waves easily flow through the coarse, porous surface of the beach, decreasing the effect of backwash erosion and increasing the formation of sediment into a steeply sloping beach.[2]
[edit] Tourism
Shingle beaches are often criticized as undesirable for visitors. Canterbury City Council notes that the nearby shingle beach at Whitstable is uncomfortable to walk and lie on.[3] Also, advertisers have been known to replace images of shingle beaches with sand in promotional material.[4]
[edit] Notable shingle beaches
- Alby, Öland, Sweden
- Birdling's Flat, Canterbury, New Zealand
- Brighton, England
- Chesil Beach, England
- Dungeness, England
- Hawar Islands, Bahrain
- Herne Bay, Kent, England
- Omaha Beach, Normandy, France
- Short Beach, Oregon, USA
- The Stade, Hastings, England
Ixia Beach, Rhodes Island Greece
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ UK's rare shingle beaches at risk, Alex Kirby, BBC News Online, June 3, 2003
- ^ Easterbrook, Don J. Surface Processes and Landforms. 1999 Prentice-Hall Inc. Upper Saddle River, NJ
- ^ http://www.canterbury.gov.uk/main.cfm?objectid=1195
- ^ http://www.eastbourneherald.co.uk/news/local-news/sandy_shore_replaces_pebbles_on_the_beach_1_2739122
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