Abstract
The bedrock-dominated coastline along the northern part of Eastern Cape , commonly known as the ‘Wild Coast ’, contains a range of coastal erosional and depositional landforms developed in bedrock and unconsolidated sediments. Typical erosional landforms found along this coast include cliffs, shore platforms and relict (fossil) clifflines , sea arches and stacks , and tafoni weathering forms. Depositional features include beachrock , aeolianite , coastal sand dunes , sandy beaches and barriers across tidal inlets . These erosional and depositional landforms are largely a product of climate and sea-level changes during the Quaternary and Holocene . The aesthetically pleasing landscapes of the Wild Coast are a significant tourist attraction.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
References
Bustamante RH, Branch GM (1996) Large scale patterns and trophic structure of southern African rocky shores: the roles of geographic variation and wave exposure. J Biogeogr 23:339–351
Cawthra H, Uken R (2012) Modern beachrock formation in Durban, KwaZulu-Natal. S Afr J Sci 108:Art#935, 5p. http://dx.doi.org/10.4102/sajs.v108i7/8.935
Cooper JAG (1991) Beachrock formation in low latitude: implications for coastal evolutionary models. Mar Geol 98:145–154
Cooper JAG (1993) Sedimentation in the cliff-bound, microtidal Mtamvuna estuary, South-Africa. Mar Geol 112:237–256
Cooper JAG (2001) Geomorphological variability among microtidal estuaries from the wave-dominated South African coast. Geomorphol 40:99–122
Cooper JAG, Flores RM (1991) Shoreline deposits and diagenesis resulting from 2 late Pleistocene highstands near +5 and +6 meters, Durban, South-Africa. Marine Geol 97:325–343
Corbella S, Stretch DD (2012) The wave climate on the KwaZulu-Natal coast of South Africa. J S Afr Inst Civil Eng 54:45–54
Dingle RV, Scrutton RA (1974) Continental breakup and development of post-Paleozoic sedimentary basins around Southern Africa. Geol Soc Am Bull 85:1467–1474
Green A, Garlick GL (2011) A sequence stratigraphic framework for a narrow, current-swept continental shelf: The Durban Bight, central KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. J Afr Earth Sci 60:303–314
Illenberger WK, Burkinshaw JR (2008) Coastal dunes and dunefields. In: Lewis CA (ed) Geomorphology of the Eastern Cape. NISC, Grahamstown, pp 85–106
Illgner PM (2008) Coastal processes and associated landforms. In: Lewis CA (ed) Geomorphology of the Eastern Cape. NISC, Grahamstown, pp 63–84
Jacobs Z, Roberts DL (2009) Last Interglacial age for aeolian and marine deposits and the Nahoon fossil human footprints, southeast coast of South Africa. Quatern Geochronol 4:160–169
Johnson MR, van Vuuren CJ, Visser JNJ, Cole DI, Wickens HdeV, Christie ADM, Roberts DL, Brandl G (2006) Sedimentary rocks of the Karoo Supergroup. In: Johnson MR, Anhaeusser CR, Thomas RJ (eds) The Geology of South Africa. Geological Society of South Africa, Johannesburg/Council for Geoscience, Pretoria, pp 461–499
Jury MR (2013) Climate trends in southern Africa. S Afr J Sci 109(1/2):Art. #980, 11 pp, http://dx.doi.org/10.1590/sajs.2013/980
Marker ME (1987) A note on marine benches of the southern Cape. S Afr Tydskr Geol 90:120–123
McBride EF, Picard MD (2004) Origin of honeycombs and related weathering forms in Oligocene Macigno Sandstone, Tuscan coast near Livorno, Italy. Earth Surf Proc Landf 29:713–735
McCarthy MJ (1967) Stratigraphical and sedimentological evidence from the Durban region of major sea-level movements since the Late Tertiary. Trans Geol Soc S Afr 70:135–165
Miller WR, Mason TR (1994) Erosional features of coastal beachrock and aeolianite outcrops in Natal and Zululand, South-Africa. J Coastal Res 10:374–394
Mather AA, Garland GG, Stretch DD (2009) Southern African sea levels: corrections, influences and trends. Afr J Mar Sci 31:145–156
Palmer BJ, McGregor GK, Hill TR, Paterson AW (2010) A spatial assessment of coastal development and land use change in the Eastern Cape, South Africa. S Afr Geogr J 92:117–128
Ramsay PJ, Cooper JAG (2002) Late Quaternary sea-level change in South Africa. Quatern Res 57:82–90
Salzmann L, Green A (2012) Boulder emplacement on a tectonically stable, wave-dominated coastline, Mission Rocks, northern KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. Mar Geol 323–325:95–106
Smith AM, Andrews JE, Uken R, Thackeray Z, Perissinotto R, Leuci R, Marca-Bell A (2011) Rock pool tufa stromatolites on a modern South African wave-cut platform: partial analogues for Archaean stromatolites? Terra Nova 23:375–381
Trenhaile AS (2010) The effect of Holocene changes in relative sea level on the morphology of rocky coasts. Geomorphol 114:30–41
Truswell JF (1972) Sandstone sheets and related intrusions from Coffee Bay, Transkei, South Africa. J Sed Petrol 42:578–583
Turpie JK, Beckley LE, Katua SM (2000) Biogeography and selection of priority areas for conservation of South African coastal fishes. Biol Cons 92:59–72
Watkeys MK (2006) Gondwana break-up: a South African perspective. In: Johnson MR, Anhaeusser CR, Thomas RJ (eds) The geology of South Africa. Geological Society of South Africa, Pretoria, pp 531–539
Watkeys MK, Mason TR, Goodman PS (1993) The rôle of geology in the development of Maputaland, South Africa. J Afr Earth Sci 16:205–221
Acknowledgments
We thank Andrew Green and Hayley Cawthra for their comments on a previous version of this chapter.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2015 Springer International Publishing Switzerland
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Knight, J., Grab, S. (2015). Rocky Shorelines of the Wild Coast. In: Grab, S., Knight, J. (eds) Landscapes and Landforms of South Africa. World Geomorphological Landscapes. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-03560-4_7
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-03560-4_7
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-319-03559-8
Online ISBN: 978-3-319-03560-4
eBook Packages: Earth and Environmental ScienceEarth and Environmental Science (R0)