Evolution of Quaternary river terraces related to the uplift of the central part of the Bohemian Massif

Abstract

Fluvial sediments in the Vltava, Berounka, Sázava and Labe valleys are preserved as extensive river terrace sequences. These accumulation terraces originated from an interaction of climate-morphogenetic and neotectonic processes in the late Cenozoic. The palaeogeographical history of the central part of the Bohemian Massif is described. Geomorphological analysis of late Cenozoic fluvial sediments preserved in the Bohemian Massif confirm that in total 7 main terrace accumulations with several secondary levels can be differentiated. A chronostratigraphical scheme of erosion and accumulation periods and their relations to variable uplift rates in the late Cenozoic is suggested. The relative height of the oldest fluvial terraces above the present-day bottoms of river valleys is more than 100 m which indicates the approximate depth of erosion in the Quaternary.