Coastal sand dune morphology is strongly influenced by vegetation cover, wind regime, and sediment supply. Along most coastlines, dune fields are dominated by parabolic dunes (U-shaped, vegetation-anchored dunes with trailing arms pointing upwind) and transverse dunes (long ridges oriented perpendicular to a unidirectional wind, common where sand supply is abundant), unlike the barchan and star dunes typical of arid desert interiors with sparse vegetation.
Coastal environments typically have abundant sand supply from beach sediment combined with some vegetation cover (grasses, shrubs) that stabilizes and anchors dune forms. This combination...
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