Introduction to the special issue: Connectivity in Geomorphology

With the increased recent attention on understanding the complex pathways and fluxes of material, energy, and organisms and the multidimensional coupling between various geomorphic process domains, the 47th Binghamton Geomorphology Symposium was organized around the theme of Connectivity in Geomorphology. Six key subthemes emerged: sediment connectivity, hydrologic connectivity, geochemical connectivity, riverine connectivity, landscape connectivity, and modeling of connectivity. Papers presented at the symposium and collected in this special issue elucidate the theoretical and conceptual underpinnings of connectivity but also provide field-based and analytical approaches to document the fundamental role of connectivity in geomorphic and ecological functioning. Among the consistent themes that emerged from the papers and from discussion during the symposium were (1) the interconnectedness of diverse forms of connectivity, (2) the appropriateness (or not) of conceptualizing connectivity as a gradient or continuum, and (3) the importance of an explicit recognition of disconnectivity as a mechanism to retain ecologically important materials and organisms within landscapes. Knowledge gaps identified in discussions during the symposium include: identifying questions that can be usefully addressed within a framework emphasizing connectivity; identifying feedbacks that enhance and limit connectivity; and quantification – of diverse aspects of connectivity, of thresholds of connectivity, and of interactions among different types of connectivity.