Page 248 - Fundamentals of Geomorphology

FLUVIAL LANDSCAPES 231

Table 9.1 Selected morphometric properties of stream networks and drainage basins
Property Symbol Definition

Network properties
Drainage density D Mean length of stream channels per unit area
Stream frequency F Number of stream segments per unit area
Length of overland flow L g The mean upslope distance from channels to watershed

Areal properties
Texture ratio T The number of crenulations in the basin contour having the maximum number of
crenulations divided by the basin perimeter length. Usually bears a strong
relationship to drainage density
Circulatory ratio C Basin area divided by the area of a circle with the same basin perimeter
Elongation ratio E Diameter of circle with the same area as the drainage basin divided by the maximum
length of the drainage basin
Lemniscate ratio k The square of basin length divided by four times the basin area
Relief properties
Basin relief H Elevational difference between the highest and lowest points in the basin
Relative relief R hp Basin relief divided by the basin perimeter
Relief ratio R h Basin relief divided by the maximum basin length
Ruggedness number N The product of basin relief and drainage density
Source: Adapted from Huggett and Cheesman (2002, 98)

Plate 9.5 High drainage density in the Zabriskie Point badlands, Death Valley, California, USA.
(Photograph by Kate Holden)