Conceptual framework for the persistence of flood-initiated geomorphological features

The paper is concerned with the degree to which geomorphological features formed by a large magnitude river flood may be expected to persist in the landscape. Fluvial and hillslope features formed in association with a particularly rare flood, on Exmoor in southwest England, are analysed after a post-event period of 50 years. New recurrence interval analyses and field assessments are combined with earlier data. The concept of static and dynamic aspects of landscape persistence is suggested, and the relative persistence potential of flood-initiated features is indicated in relation to the recurrence interval of formative events.