ABSTRACT
The tropics contain some of the earth’s most seismically active and highly volcanic terrains as well as some of the most extensive erosional surfaces. Much of the evolution of the stable areas of the tropics may be related to the denudation of the Gondwanaland continent and the drifting of the fragments following its breakup. Biostasy allows for the development of deep, highly leached weathering profiles and duricrust formation. Several ages of duricrust of all types are found in the present-day tropics, but their global distribution is poorly understood. Summerfield shows that there is a golden opportunity for bringing the exogenetic and endogenetic processes together in a truly dynamic approach to tropical geomorphology and environmental change. Studies of the landforms of Sri Lanka have been dominated by attempts to interpret the land surfaces of the island.
