Wood as a driver of past landscape change along river corridors

The role of wood as a driver of landform development appears to have been overlooked in the interpretation of palaeo‐landscape change along river corridors. Deforested river corridors and wood‐free rivers characterize ‘modern’, managed landscapes, but along natural river corridors both driftwood dynamics and tree reproductive strategies can have a dramatic impact on the style and rate of channel and floodplain development. Therefore, we believe that interpretations of the post‐glacial history of river valleys across the northern temperate climatic zone could be usefully reassessed, incorporating the roles of riparian trees.