Skip to main content

Thank you for visiting nature.com. You are using a browser version with limited support for CSS. To obtain the best experience, we recommend you use a more up to date browser (or turn off compatibility mode in Internet Explorer). In the meantime, to ensure continued support, we are displaying the site without styles and JavaScript.

  • Article
  • Published:

Preservation of inner gorges through repeated Alpine glaciations

Nature Geoscience volume 4, pages 62–67 (2011)Cite this article

Subjects

Abstract

Extensive valley glaciers have repeatedly covered the inner gorges of the Swiss Alps during Quaternary glaciations. Two controversial explanations of the development of the features have been proposed. In the first, the gorges would have formed anew each time the glaciers receded, through fluvial incision of the previously glaciated surfaces. Alternatively, the valleys could be palimpsest features, carved through successive glacial–interglacial cycles. Here we use topographic data derived from LiDAR measurements to show that fluvial erosion rates of 8.5–18 mm yr−1 would be required to create the current relief of Swiss gorges solely during the present interglacial period. Such high rates exceed the long-term average bedrock erosion rates of even the most tectonically active regions. This scenario would also require that previously incised valleys were erased during successive glaciations by commensurately high glacial erosion rates, a suggestion that is incompatible with available constraints of exhumation from thermochronometry. We therefore suggest that the gorges observed in the Swiss Alps are resilient to repeated glaciations. Our data are most consistent with the hypothesis that gorges are progressively incised below the elevations of glacial trough valleys through multiple glaciations.

This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution

Access options

Buy this article

  • Purchase on Springer Link
  • Instant access to full article PDF
Buy now

Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout

Figure 1: Topography of northern Swiss Alps with inner gorges mapped from 25-m digital elevation data.
Figure 2: Rates of inferred post-glacial gorge incision.
Figure 3: Quaternary erosion rates necessary to erase interglacially carved gorges.
Figure 4: Geomorphic and sedimentary evidence of post-glacial valley infill and dissection of inner gorges, Landquart River (see Fig. 1 for location).
Figure 5: LiDAR-derived topography of southern front of the ∼9 kyr Flims rockslide (yellow brown shade, l1; see Fig. 1 for location).

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. Kelsey, H. M. Formation of inner gorges. Catena 15, 433–458 (1988).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  2. Ouimet, W. B., Whipple, K. X., Crosby, B. T., Johnson, J. P. & Schildgen, T. F. Epigenetic gorges in fluvial landscapes. Earth Surf. Process. Landf. 33, 1993–2009 (2008).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  3. Densmore, A. L. & Hovius, N. Topographic fingerprints of bedrock landslides. Geology 28, 371–374 (2000).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  4. Korup, O. & Schlunegger, F. Bedrock landsliding, river incision, and transience of geomorphic hillslope–channel coupling: Evidence from inner gorges in the Swiss Alps. J. Geophys. Res. 112, F03027 (2007).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  5. Hallet, B., Hunter, L. & Bogen, J. Rates of erosion and sediment evacuation by glaciers: A review of field data and their implications. Glob. Planet. Change 12, 213–235 (1996).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  6. Penck, A. & Brückner, E. Die Alpen im Eiszeitalter (Tauchnitz, 1909).

    Google Scholar 

  7. McEwen, L. J., Matthews, J. A., Shakesby, R. A. & Berrisford, M. S. Holocene gorge excavation linked to boulder fan formation and frost weathering in a Norwegian alpine periglaciofluvial system. Arct. Antarct. Alp. Res. 34, 346–358 (2002).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  8. Brocard, G. Y., van der Beek, P. A., Bourles, D. L., Siame, L. L. & Mugnier, J-L. Long-term fluvial incision rates and postglacial river relaxation time in the French Western Alps from 10Be dating of alluvial terraces with assessment of inheritance, soil development and wind ablation effects. Earth Planet. Sci. Lett. 209, 197–214 (2003).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  9. Schlunegger, F. & Hinderer, M. Pleistocene/Holocene climate change, re-establishment of fluvial drainage network and increase in relief in the Swiss Alps. Terra Nova 15, 88–95 (2003).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  10. Meigs, A., Krugh, W. C., Davis, K. & Bank, G. Ultra-rapid landscape response and sediment yield following glacier retreat, Icy Bay, southern Alaska. Geomorphology 78, 207–221 (2006).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  11. Valla, P. G., van der Beek, P. A. & Carcaillet, J. Dating bedrock gorge incision in the French Western Alps (Ecrins–Pelvoux massif) using cosmogenic 10Be. Terra Nova 22, 18–25 (2009).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  12. Bonney, T. G. Alpine valleys in relation to glaciers. Q. J. Geol. Soc. 58, 690–702 (1902).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  13. Garwood, E. J. Features of Alpine scenery due to glacial protection. Geogr. J. 36, 310–336 (1910).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  14. Cadisch, J. Zur Talgeschichte von Davos. Jahresber. Naturforsch Ges. Graub. 59, 285–299 (1926).

    Google Scholar 

  15. De Graaff, L. W. S. The fluvial factor in the evolution of alpine valleys and of ice-marginal topography in Vorarlberg (W-Austria) during the upper Pleistocene and Holocene. Z. Geomorph. 104, 129–159 (1996).

    Google Scholar 

  16. Kühni, A. & Pfiffner, O. A. The relief of the Swiss Alps and adjacent areas and its relation to lithology and structure: Topographic analysis from a 250-m DEM. Geomorphology 41, 285–307 (2001).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  17. Korup, O. & Schlunegger, F. Rock-type control on erosion-induced uplift, eastern Swiss Alps. Earth Planet. Sci. Lett. 278, 278–285 (2009).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  18. Willett, S. D., Schlunegger, F. & Picotti, V. Messinian climate change and erosional destruction of the central European Alps. Geology 34, 613–616 (2006).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  19. Muttoni, G. et al. Onset of major Pleistocene glaciations in the Alps. Geology 31, 989–992 (2003).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  20. Haeuselmann, P., Granger, D. E., Jeannin, P-Y. & Lauritzen, S-E. Abrupt glacial valley incision at 0.8 Myr dated from cave deposits in Switzerland. Geology 35, 143–146 (2007).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  21. Kahle, H. G. et al. in Results of the National Research Program 20 (NRP 20) (eds Pfiffner, O. A., Lehner, P., Heitzmann, P., Muller, S. & Steck, A.) 251–259 (Birkhäuser, 1997).

    Google Scholar 

  22. Schlatter, A., Schneider, D., Geiger, A. & Kahle, H-G. Recent vertical movements from precise levelling in the vicinity of the city of Basel, Switzerland. Int. J. Earth Sci. 94, 507–514 (2005).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  23. Ivy-Ochs, S. et al. Chronology of the last glacial cycle in the European Alps. J. Quat. Sci. 23, 559–573 (2008).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  24. Jäckli, H. Gegenwartsgeologie des bündnerischen Rheingebietes. Beitr. Geol. Schweiz. Geotech. Ser. 36, 136 (1957).

    Google Scholar 

  25. Lamb, M. P. & Fonstad, M. A. Rapid formation of a modern bedrock canyon by a single flood event. Nature Geosci. 3, 477–481 (2010).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  26. Persaud, M. & Pfiffner, O. A. Active deformation in the eastern Swiss Alps: Post-glacial faults, seismicity and surface uplift. Tectonophysics 385, 59–84 (2004).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  27. Vernon, A. J. et al. Variable late Neogene exhumation of the central European Alps: Low-temperature thermochronology from the Aar Massif, Switzerland, and the Lepontine Dome, Italy. Tectonics 28, TC5004 (2009).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  28. Hinderer, M. Late quaternary denudation of the Alps, valley and lake fillings and modern river loads. Geodin. Acta 14, 231–263 (2001).

    Google Scholar 

  29. Tricart, J. A subglacial gorge: La Gorge du Guil (Hautes-Alpes). J. Glaciol. 3, 646–651 (1960).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  30. Ivy-Ochs, S., Poschinger, A. V., Synal, H-A. & Maisch, M. Surface exposure dating of the Flims landslide, Graubünden, Switzerland. Geomorphology 103, 104–112 (2009).

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgements

All digital elevation and terrain data reproduced courtesy of swisstopo (JA082265). O.K. acknowledges funding by the German Research Foundation (Heisenberg Programme). D.R.M. thanks the Swiss Federal Research Institute WSL/SLF for hosting a visit that fostered the development of this work.

Author information

Author notes

  1. Oliver Korup

    Present address: Present address: Institute of Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Potsdam, D-14776 Potsdam, Germany,

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Earth and Space Sciences, Quaternary Research Center, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195-1310, USA

    David R. Montgomery

  2. Swiss Federal Research Institutes WSL/SLF, Flüelastr. 11, CH-7260 Davos, Switzerland

    Oliver Korup

Authors
  1. David R. Montgomery
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Oliver Korup
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Contributions

O.K. mapped bedrock gorge distributions, conducted terrain analyses, and fieldwork; both authors contributed to conceptualizing, interpreting and writing.

Corresponding authors

Correspondence to David R. Montgomery or Oliver Korup.

Ethics declarations

Competing interests

The authors declare no competing financial interests.

Supplementary information

Supplementary Information

Supplementary Information (PDF 662 kb)

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Montgomery, D., Korup, O. Preservation of inner gorges through repeated Alpine glaciations. Nature Geosci 4, 62–67 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1038/ngeo1030

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/ngeo1030

This article is cited by

Search

Advanced search

Quick links

Nature Briefing

Sign up for the Nature Briefing newsletter — what matters in science, free to your inbox daily.

Get the most important science stories of the day, free in your inbox. Sign up for Nature Briefing