UK Physical Landscapes: River Landscapes
River landscapes covers how rivers erode, transport and deposit material to create distinctive landforms along their course, from interlocking spurs and waterfalls in the upper course to meanders, oxbow lakes, floodplains and estuaries further downstream.
Before you start
Make sure you're comfortable with these topics first:
Method
- Learn the four processes of erosion (hydraulic action, abrasion, attrition, solution) and the three processes of transportation (traction, saltation, suspension), plus deposition.
- Learn how the river's long profile (gradient) and cross profile (width, depth, velocity) change from source to mouth.
- Learn the stepwise process by which upper-course landforms form: interlocking spurs, then waterfalls and gorges around bands of resistant rock.
- Learn the stepwise process by which meanders and oxbow lakes form, linking erosion on the outer bank with deposition on the inner bank.
- Learn how floodplains, levees and estuary features (such as mudflats and salt marsh) form through repeated flooding and deposition.
- Learn one hard engineering strategy and one soft engineering strategy for managing flood risk, with one advantage and one disadvantage of each.
- Learn a named UK example of a river landform and a named UK flood-management scheme, ready for exam use.
- Practise gradient and other simple river calculations, showing your working clearly.
Worked example
A river drops from 240m above sea level at point A to 60m above sea level at point B, 12km downstream. Calculate the average gradient of the river between A and B, in metres per kilometre.
- Find the fall in height between the two points: 240 - 60.
- Calculate: 240 - 60 = 180m.
- Note the horizontal distance between the two points: 12km.
- Divide the fall in height by the distance: 180 / 12.
- Calculate: 180 / 12 = 15.
- State the final answer: average gradient = 15 metres per kilometre.
Practice questions
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Q1Name the erosion process in which rocks carried by a river collide with each other and become smaller and more rounded.Show answer
Answer: Attrition.
Q2Name the transportation process in which small pebbles are bounced or hopped along the river bed.Show answer
Answer: Saltation.
Q3State one landform formed in the upper course of a river where it winds around bands of resistant rock.Show answer
Answer: Interlocking spurs.
Q4Name the raised bank of sediment deposited alongside a river channel during a flood.Show answer
Answer: A levee.
Q5Name one hard engineering method of managing river flood risk, other than a dam and reservoir.Show answer
Answer: Channel straightening (or building embankments).
Q6A river channel is 4.5m wide upstream and 18m wide downstream at the same time of year. Calculate how many times wider the channel is downstream than upstream.Show answer
Answer: 4 times (18 divided by 4.5).
Exam-style questions
Written in the style of a GCSE Geography exam paper, with a full mark scheme.
Explain how a river's cross profile typically changes between its upper course and its lower course, referring to width, depth and the river bed.
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Compare the formation of a waterfall with the formation of a meander, explaining one similarity and one difference in the erosion processes involved.
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See real GCSE Geography past-paper questions, with official mark schemes →
Free printable worksheet
Want more practice on paper? Download the uk physical landscapes: river landscapes worksheet pack - 10 pages of exam-style questions with a full mark scheme. One email opens every download in this browser for 14 days - no account, no card. Print it for personal and classroom use.
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