Abstract
ABSTRACT The Mfolozi Estuary situated in northern KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa is a shallow, micro-tidal estuary with average depths of less than 1.5 m during mean flow conditions. During low flow conditions, a combination of sedimentation processes, including longshore drift, tidal and aeolian transport, leads to a rapid reduction in the width, and a northerly migration of the estuary mouth. The result is a reduction in the tidal prism affecting the estuary, and tidal ranges at the mouth drop sharply and conditions in the estuary become lagoonal. On the other hand, seasonal high fluvial flows and major floods cause breaching of the sand barrier, creating a new mouth inlet with major changes in estuarine dynamics and morphology. The short term observed transitional changes between estuarine and lagoonal conditions are outlined in relation to long term historical evidence of spatial and temporal variation in the Mfolozi system so as to qualify the dominant forcing processes controlling the morphodynamics.
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