How do mudslides form?
Landslides & Mudslides Debris flow is a generic term used by scientists to describe the rapid movement of rocks, soil, water, and vegetation downhill. A debris flow could be a mudslide or a landslide, depending on the amount of water present. Flows contain many different-sized particles from sand grains to boulders, but the biggest rocks travel at the front of the flow. Debris flows are a natural occurrence. In fact, Gordon Reed, a fish biologist with the U.S. Forest Service Research Lab in Oregon, says that flow events are a major force in delivering wood and gravel to streams to create fish habitat. Landslides are at the drier end of the debris flow spectrum. Their smaller water content makes them more like oatmeal on a camping trip — sticky, gloopy, and full of sticks and rocks. Landslides are classified by the speed at which they move. “Creeps” move only a few inches downhill a year, but given enough time they can push railroad tracks and fences out of line. Avalanches move very f
