Strand plain

<p>A strand plain or  strandplain  is a broad belt of sand along a <a href="/facts/Shoreline/yRlfT1Q6">shoreline</a> with a surface exhibiting well-defined parallel or semi-parallel sand ridges separated by shallow <a href="/facts/Swale_(landform)/X8DtobwV">swales</a>. A strand plain differs from a <a href="/facts/Barrier_island/7tA4Qejz">barrier island</a> in that it lacks either the <a href="/facts/Lagoons/IBp4ez2D">lagoons</a> or <a href="/facts/Tidal_marsh/1SYLVN97">tidal marshes</a> that separate a barrier island from the <a href="/facts/Shoreline/yRlfT1Q6">shoreline</a> to which the strand plain is directly attached. Also, the <a href="/facts/Tidal_channel/bxcjv03t">tidal channels</a> and inlets which cut through barrier islands are absent. Strand plains typically are created by the redistribution by waves and longshore currents of coarse <a href="/facts/Sediment/zsIH1A6U">sediment</a> on either side of a river mouth. Thus, they are part of one type of wave-dominated <a href="/facts/River_delta/fmWuaRqX">delta</a>.
</p><p>Examples of strand plains:
</p>
<ul><li>Western <a href="/facts/Louisiana/2GvfFcKE">Louisiana</a></li>
<li>Eastern <a href="/facts/Texas/B987WHF0">Texas</a></li>
<li>West coast of <a href="/facts/Namibia/ahXuaypy">Namibia</a></li>
<li>South-east and south-west coasts of <a href="/facts/Australia/qLHpbppq">Australia</a>, and in the <a href="/facts/Gulf_of_Carpentaria/tmr0Vtj5">Gulf of Carpentaria</a></li>
<li>Letea and Caraorman, <a href="/facts/Danube_Delta/lfVQy0sk">Danube Delta</a>, <a href="/facts/Romania/yolzk5cN">Romania</a></li>
<li>Kustvlakte, <a href="/facts/Suriname/zjwRFBPL">Suriname</a></li>
<li>Cayo Costa, Florida</li></ul>

Strand plain open-in-new

Strand plain