Alta actividad de la incisión fluvial y de los procesos de ladera en el valle del río Guadalentín (Pozo Alcón, Jaén)

Abstract

In the Guadalentín River basin, it exists a prominent contrast between the upper part, which drains the prebetic limestone reliefs of the Pozo, Cabrilla and Castril mountain ranges, and the lower part, located in the Guadix-Baza Basin. In this sector, the river has excavated a valley of 200 to 300 meters deep in a glacis that corresponds to the infilling surface of the ancient endorheic Guadix-Baza basin. The age of the valley is younger than the recent capture (about 400 ka ago) of this endorheic basin by the fluvial network of the Guadalquivir River, which implies very high fluvial incision rates (probably more than 0.6 mm/year). Simultaneously, the slopes of the valley have been affected by extremely active hillside processes. The last major one occurred in 2014 and affected 4 ha of olive groves in Los Hondillos area. These processes have moved large masses of materials to the riverbed, causing significant changes in the river path and, above all, in its longitudinal profile.