Source: US Geological Survey
“This study shows that there is a seasonal predictability to these pocket beaches, which are a fundamental landform type along California’s rocky shore,” said USGS Research Geologist Jon Warrick, lead author of the study.
Because the dataset used primarily captured medium and large beaches, researchers believe many more pocket beaches exhibit similar rotational behavior but went undetected due to their small size. That means the number of seasonally rotating beaches may be significantly undercounted.
Understanding how these pocket beaches behave over time is important not only for managing erosion and habitat change, but also for improving models that forecast coastal response to climate-driven shifts in wave energy and sea level.