Dynamic drainage reorganization in Eastern Tibet: Insights from the Yangtze River first bend
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Abstract
The modern drainage network of eastern Tibet is widely believed to have developed through a series of river capture and flow reversal events; however, the timing and mechanisms driving this reorganization remain contentious. Among these events, the river capture that formed the First Bend of the Yangtze River (YFB) stands out as both iconic and particularly debated. Here we present sedimentary provenance data from the Late Miocene–Quaternary Dali Basin, located south of the YFB, which indicate that a southward-flowing Jinsha River (i.e., the present-day upper Yangtze River) sourced sediment to the Dali basin at ∼7.4–6.4 Ma in a drainage configuration different from that of today. Because this interval postdates the initial establishment of a near-modern Jinsha River system prior to the Miocene, our results imply at least two discrete fluvial reorganizations occurred at the YFB—one preceding ∼7.4 Ma and another following ∼6.4 Ma. By integrating these findings with landscape evolution modeling, we infer that the initiation of rapid uplift of the Yulong-Haba Mountains and the Diancang Shan may have been responsible for these drainage reorganizations. These results underscore that Cenozoic drainage systems on the eastern Tibetan Plateau have evolved dynamically on a short timescale of ∼105–106-year, rather than remaining in a long-term stationary configuration on ∼107-year timescales.
Suggested Citation
Zhao, X., Li, Y., Zhang, H., Lease, R.O., Wang, Y., Hao, Y., Ma, Z., Xie, H., Kang, H., Xiong, J., and Zhang, P., 2026, Dynamic drainage reorganization in Eastern Tibet: Insights from the Yangtze River first bend: Earth and Planetary Science Letters, v. 686, 120054, 13 p., https://doi.org/10.1016/j.epsl.2026.120054.
Study Area
| Publication type | Article |
|---|---|
| Publication Subtype | Journal Article |
| Title | Dynamic drainage reorganization in Eastern Tibet: Insights from the Yangtze River first bend |
| Series title | Earth and Planetary Science Letters |
| DOI | 10.1016/j.epsl.2026.120054 |
| Volume | 686 |
| Publication Date | April 22, 2026 |
| Year Published | 2026 |
| Language | English |
| Publisher | Elsevier |
| Contributing office(s) | Alaska Science Center Geology Minerals |
| Description | 120054, 13 p. |
| Country | China |
| Other Geospatial | eastern Tibetan Plateau, first bend of the Yangtze River |