Fluvial terraces of the northwest Iberian lower Miño River

Abstract

A new fluvial terrace map with a tectonic framework for the northwest Iberian lower Miño River is presented. It is the first integrated map to cover the entire lower, 67-km reach of the Miño River, and to cover both the Spanish and Portuguese side of the river. The map is presented at a scale of 1:200,000, although its features were mapped at a scale of 1:5000. Various map layers can be viewed, such as a digital elevation model (DEM), fluvial sediment thickness layers, a palaeoflow direction layer, a lineament and fault layer, and two terrace and tectonic basin layers, showing up to 10 fluvial terraces and a floodplain level. Interpretation of the map shows that next to regional tectonic uplift and glacioeustacy, local basin subsidence and small-scale block movement are very important for the fluvial network, localised fluvial terrace formation, and preservation.