Abstract

COCA, Oswaldo  and  RICAURTE-VILLOTA, Constanza. Morphodynamics of a macro-tidal tropical beach: La Bocana, Pacific coast of Colombia. Bol. Invest. Mar. Cost. [online]. 2023, vol.52, n.2, pp.77-102.  Epub July 02, 2024. ISSN 0122-9761.  https://doi.org/10.25268/bimc.invemar.2023.52.2.1209.

This study analyzes the morphodynamics of La Bocana beach in the tropical Colombian Pacific, in a macro-tidal regime. The data were taken with a differential global positioning system to generate digital elevation models and beach profiles between 2014 and 2019. Subsequently, a morphodynamic classification was performed using the parameters of dimensionless fall speed and relative amplitude of the tides. The results indicated that the predominant beach types were dominated and modified by the tide: dissipative type (modified by tides, dominated by tides and erosive) and intermediate (modified by tides and non-erosive). Reflective profiles were observed in front of the beach (erosive season) in 2014 and 2015. Although the studied beach is located in the tropics, the results do not differ from those proposed for mid-latitude beaches. The results suggest the dominance of the tidal range in the determination of the morphodynamic states of the beach. This study shows that La Bocana beach has different spatiotemporal morphodynamic states, that is, there is no single representative beach state. Six years of data show intra-annual (seasonal) variations or under certain environmental conditions which significantly change the beaches.

Keywords : beach morphology; coastal erosion; wave; tidal; morphological classification.

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