What can novel mixed sand-mud bedforms tell us about cohesive sediment gravity flow behaviour in the fringe of submarine fans?
Bedforms are a key tool to reconstruct sedimentary processes in modern and ancient environments. This talk will present novel mixed sand-mud bedforms which have different shapes and sizes compared to pure-sand bedforms, and are found in the fringe of submarine fans. These striking mixed sand-mud bedforms are interpreted to be produced by sediment gravity flows with transient-turbulent fluid dynamics, due to the presence of cohesive clay. The presence and spatial trends in mixed sand–mud bedform types may be an important tool in interpreting fan fringe environments.