SMALL SCALE ROCK WEATHERING: AN ANALOGY WITH LARGE SCALE LANDSCAPE DENUDATION

The transition in geomorphological enquiry from a large scale historical approach to a predominantly reductionist approach is exemplified by weathering studies, where small scale process investigations prevail. Within geomorphology as a whole, process studies may be viewed as a means to an end; however, attempts to integrate process studies with landform, or landscape, evolution remain problematic. Explanation of weathering forms on rock outcrops requires an understanding not only of the processes of change, but also of their spatial and temporal variability; observed patterns of rock weathering are the result of the operation of an inherently complex and variable weathering system. Earlier studies of weathering-dominated landscape evolution addressed questions of spatial variations in patterns and rates of weathering, environmental and geologic specificity of forms, morphological convergence, the concept of a dynamic weathering front and the significance of feedback mechanisms within the weathering system. This paper suggests that early models of landscape evolution provide useful analogies for small scale rock surface retreat, and that transposition of conceptual models across scale boundaries may aid our understanding of patterns of surface material loss related to, or driven by, weathering.