00554 - 9 - Arid and Semi - Arid Geomorphology

The world’s arid lands are some of the most beautiful landscapes on Earth, and their paucity of vegetation often makes it possible to see landforms and structures with great clarity (Figure 1.1). In addition, they have many characteristics both in terms of landforms and geomorphological processes that render them different from other major environments (see, for example, Laity, 2008; Parsons and Abrahams, 2009; Thomas, 2011a). In this section we first consider how ideas about dryland geomorphology have evolved, before moving on to a consideration of what desert environments are like now and how they have varied over time.