coastal dunes
Shoreline sand hills
Coastal dunes are hills of sand formed by wind along shorelines.
They develop where waves deposit sand that dries and blows inland, accumulating around vegetation or other obstacles.
Coastal dunes serve as natural barriers against storms and erosion, protecting inland areas from flooding: The coastal dunes were damaged during the hurricane.
They host distinctive ecosystems of salt-tolerant grasses and wildlife adapted to shifting, sandy environments.
- sandy beachesCoastlines covered with granules
- sea breezeWind from ocean to land
- swaleSoggy terrain depression
- dunesWind-formed sand ridges
- blowoutsDecisive one-sided wins
barrier islands · high tide line · sea oats · beach grass · sediment · pioneer species · overwash · climate resilience · wind patterns · deposition · sandboarding · erosion · plovers · undulating · geomorphology · shifting · footprints · erosion control
- beachbeach, sand, wave, waves, surf
- European natureAlps, Pyrenees, Carpathians, Balkans, Mediterranean
- coastal featuresshore, beach, bay, cliff, cove
- coastscliffs, shoreline, sandy shore, coves, bays
- Florida Coastsandy beach, Florida Keys, Key West, Miami Beach, Daytona Beach
- habitatsforest, ocean, lake, river, pond
coastal dunesocean floor
Underwater continental surface
seabed · tidal flats · coastal marshes · mudflats · mangrove swamps