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Pratorotondo blockfields

Extremely significant examples of the deposits can be observed at Prariondo (Sassello) hiking eastwards along the Alta Via dei Monti Liguri track (close to Bric Damè).
The block streams are characterised by the presence of lobes that are both oriented along the flow direction and transversal to it. Several concentric furrows and ridges, typical of compressive flow, are visible in the frontal areas of the block fields.
The very coarse (always more than 60 cm of diameter) openwork texture of the block streams surface is characterised by blocks that dip along the borders vertically or diverging of more than 30° opposite to the flow direction.

The identification of evident solifluction structures in the deposits, coupled with morphologic features indicating that blocks were formed in situ following substratum disintegration, are elements confirming the actual presence of gelifluction on these deposits and subsequently of a real periglacial environment.
The data resulting from morphometric studies of the bodies carried out with different methods proposed by different authors, allow identifying these deposits as block streams or block fields and therefore underlining once more that they were originated in a periglacial environment. The certain periglacial origin of these deposits represents an extremely important indication to reconstruct the climate boundaries during the last glacial period; in fact, some morphologic processes, which nowadays are not present any more, occurred at that time in this area and left evident documentation of a paleoclimate colder that the present one.

Municipality: Sassello (SV)
Pian del Fretto blockfields
Pian del Fretto blockfields
(photo by PR Beigua)
 
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