The landforms that are created by massive earth movements due to place tectonics are called _________________.

Option A

The landforms that are created by massive earth movements due to place tectonics are called structural landforms.

Structural landforms are geomorphic features controlled by the underlying geological structure and the distribution of rocks with different resistances to erosion. Erosion tends to preferentially exploit zones underlain by weaker rocks (differential erosion), generating an uneven topography controlled by litho-structural factors. Spatial variations in bedrock erodibility may be related to a number of mappable lithological and structural features. In stratigraphic successions, lithological changes may be related to the superposition of different rock units through conformable or unconformable stratigraphic contacts or to lateral facies changes. Faults (normal, reverse, strike-slip and oblique) may control selective erosion in two main ways. The shattered and sheared material associated with fault planes and fault zones are typically weaker. Faults may also juxtapose different rock units with markedly different resistances to erosion. In areas with plutonic rocks, the lithological changes and their geometrical characteristics may be controlled by the intrusive contact of the igneous bodies with the country rock. The contact may have a dome-shaped geometry (batholiths, laccoliths), a planar subhorizontal shape (sills) or a steep attitude (dykes, volcanic necks).