Dissected drumlin, Red Banks, Shapinsay
Glacial Deposition
Two main groups of landforms are recognised that result from deposition by ice:
- glacial forms, deposited directly from ice
- glacifluvial forms, deposited by meltwater
Examples from both groups of landforms are represented on Orkney. These landforms may be also be classified in terms of their position relative to the former glacier, as subglacial, englacial, supraglacial, marginal and proglacial landforms.
Glacial deposition is largely
confined to low-lying areas on Orkney, where thicknesses of till may exceed 10
m. The glacial deposits drape the landscape, smoothing its outlines.
Ice-marginal features are largely unrecognised outside Hoy and the glacial
landforms relate mainly to the passage of the last ice sheet. Locally, multiple
till sequences occur but it is uncertain if any predate the last ice sheet.