The Librilla "rambla", an example of morphogenetic crisis in the Holocene (Murcia, Spain)

Abstract

The Librilla basin is situated in the southeast of Spain. It is a tributary of the Guadalentin River, which drains an active rift bounded by the Alhama fault. The longitudinal profile of the Librilla rambla is uneven. Rock bars, such as at Fuente-Librilla, have trapped the deposits conveyed by the Librilla torrent (ramblas) and the Guadalentin River. Geomorphic processes have remodelled the sediments into polygenetic debris fans in several stages between 6500 and 2500 BP. The Holocene fills contain archaeological artefacts, charcoals, pollen and remains of human settlements that allow reconstruction of a protohistoric morphogenic crisis in this area, which is characterised today by a Mediterranean semi-arid climate. © 2002 Elsevier Science Ltd and INQUA. All rights reserved.