<p>These are terracettes <br><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terracette#targetText=In%20geomorphology%2C%20a%20terracette%20is,them%20to%20move%20slowly%20downhill" rel="nofollow noreferrer">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terracette#targetText=In%20geomorphology%2C%20a%20terracette%20is,them%20to%20move%20slowly%20downhill</a>
 <br> These are caused by natural earth movements as the slope angle is beyond the natural resting angle of the soil. These slopes are a result of rapid erosion e.g. by rivers and glaciers.
Solifluction <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solifluction" rel="nofollow noreferrer">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solifluction</a> is a similar process.</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2019-10-10T17:27:42.697Z
Have you ever asked yourself why these 'natural earth movements' only occur where there are grazing animals?
Michael Walsby
CC BY-SA 4.0
2019-10-10T17:43:51.697Z
Since there's a disagreement between two answers here, perhaps it would be helpful if one or both of them were to give a peer-reviewed reference or two.
Semidiurnal Simon
CC BY-SA 4.0
2019-10-10T21:23:50.623Z
I'll do better than that. Rather than just quote another opinion which may well be wrong, if you click " ancient chalk figures on English hillsides" on Wickipadia, this will show you manyhillsides wit these livestock-generated contour lines on them. If you can't believe th evidence of your own eyes, what can you believe?
Michael Walsby
CC BY-SA 4.0
2019-10-10T21:44:12.617Z
+1 for including links (and references therein) that back up your answer!
samcarter_is_at_topanswers.xyz
CC BY-SA 4.0
2019-10-11T18:06:59.363Z
@MichaelWalsby a picture on Wikipedia is not "better than" a peer reviewed reference. I just did go to the Hill Figures page on Wiki, as you asked, and from a quick skim I couldn't see either terracettes *or* livestock in any of the pictures. But I admittedly didn't spend very long looking, because I don't see that this would prove anything. Seeing livestock there does not mean that they caused the structures.
Semidiurnal Simon
CC BY-SA 4.0
2019-10-11T18:09:48.543Z
(wiki links are, similarly, not good evidence for the soil creep answer either. Maybe both of these theories are true in some cases. Maybe neither is. I don't think any firm evidence has been linked by anybody here)
Semidiurnal Simon
CC BY-SA 4.0
2019-10-11T19:42:49.507Z
I wasn't talking a bout one photo, there are about a dozen there, all full of livesstock generated contour lines. If you didn't see them, no wonder you don't trust your own eyes and would rather take someone else's word for it. It will be interesting to see if anyone else has  a similar experience to yours. I rely on my eyes a lot, because I know I can trust them, but I can see why you don't trust yours.
Michael Walsby
CC BY-SA 4.0
2019-10-11T19:56:42.180Z
PS I don't think grazing animals are visible in the photos, but I assure you these hills are grazed by sheep and possibly other animals. How else would the grass be kept so short? British farmers are not so mad that they would find some profitless way of mowing these hills instead of using them for grazing.
Michael Walsby
CC BY-SA 4.0
2019-10-13T17:27:34.320Z
You're probably right that the hills are grazed (although I'm not sure whether grass might naturally stay short on chalk hillsides - it's terrible soil). But that *does not prove that the animals created the terracettes*. Maybe they do - *I don't know*. We have two competing explanations here, and no authoritative sources for either of them. We should, therefore, be rather cautious about declaring one of them to be correct.
Semidiurnal Simon
CC BY-SA 4.0
2019-10-10T14:47:41.520Z
2019-10-10T14:53:02.713Z
2019-10-10T14:53:02.713Z
MiguelH
<p>When I looked at your photograph it immediately occurred to me what the explanation was, but when I read your text I could see you already knew the answer. I can confirm that you are right. These contour lines appear all over the world where grazing animals are kept and there are hills to negotiate, so there is nothing unusual about them.</p>

<p>If you click 'ancient chalk figures on English hillsides' on Wickipaedia, you will find that almost all the chalk figures have these contour lines around them,and by some amazing coincidence all these hillsides are frequented by grazing animals! One of the best photos showing  what I mean is the Long Man Of Wilmington, which not only shows clear contour lines, but shows the sheep as well.</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2019-10-10T17:01:25.190Z
According to the Wikipedia article linked by MiguelH, this is an old belief that is now thought to be incorrect.
(Not my field, I have no knowledge of my own to bring to bear here)
Semidiurnal Simon
CC BY-SA 4.0
2019-10-10T17:16:27.433Z
I read somewhere that, like crop circles, they are made by aliens. I don't believe it, but if you'd rather believe that, I can't  stop you.
Michael Walsby
CC BY-SA 4.0
2019-10-10T17:23:02.893Z
I am not suggesting that they are made by aliens. What does that have to do with anything?
Semidiurnal Simon
CC BY-SA 4.0
2019-10-10T17:38:33.357Z
These markings have the same association with grazing animals that crop circles have with mischievous nocturnal humans. No grazing animals - no 'natural earth movements', no mischievous humans - no crop circles.
Michael Walsby
CC BY-SA 4.0
2019-10-10T17:43:20.173Z
*shrug* I don't claim expertise in this area. I won't argue. But *please* only answer things that you *actually know about*. (maybe this is one of those things)
Semidiurnal Simon
CC BY-SA 4.0
2019-10-10T17:54:28.220Z
Yes, it is one of those things. I have come across the phenomenon before. The contour lines are not exclusive  to Colombia, we have them in UK too. Oddly enough, I have never heard of crop circles outside UK, though I don't say they don't exist.
Michael Walsby
CC BY-SA 4.0
2019-10-10T13:58:08.937Z
2019-10-13T21:40:35.663Z
2019-10-13T21:40:35.663Z
Michael Walsby
<p>In Colombia, many grassy hillsides are terraced, like in the photo below. This terracing also occurs on hillsides that never had these palm trees on them. I assume that it also occurs outside of Colombia. How does this terracing happen?</p>

<p>Just from my first-hand observations, I think the answer is: The terracing was formed by grazing livestock. Grazing livestock is common in these areas, and the barbed wire fence hints that it is occurring here. On flat ground, the livestock wander in random directions. On steep ground, the livestock prefer to follow the hill's contour lines, as that is the easiest path to walk, as opposed to more directly uphill or downhill. When a livestock initiates a contour path on a not-yet-terraced hillside, that path is repeatedly trod by subsequent livestock, as it is a little flatter and easier to walk than other contour paths, eventually leading to significant terracing. The terracing is uneven (not level) because the livestock have to go up or down a bit to graze elsewhere on the hill.</p>

<p>Can anybody confirm my answer, or provide another answer that is objectively correct, preferably with citations? I asked the same question in the form of an <a href="https://puzzling.stackexchange.com/questions/90003/how-did-these-grassy-hillsides-become-unevenly-terraced">SE puzzle</a>, which is currently on hold because "This question may invite speculative answers, as the question is not fully defined. The validity of some answers may be based upon opinion. Good questions for this site [<a href="https://puzzling.stackexchange.com/">puzzling.stackexchange.com</a>] have a limited number of objectively correct answers." I may be able to save the puzzle with a definitive answer here.</p>

<p><a href="https://i.sstatic.net/hEnmt.jpg" rel="nofollow noreferrer"><img src="https://i.sstatic.net/hEnmt.jpg" alt="Angela Calle and Daniel Di Palma [CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)]"></a></p>

<p>Click for <a href="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e4/Valle_del_cocora_-_wax_palm_02.jpg" rel="nofollow noreferrer">high-resolution photo</a></p>

<p>Photo credit:
Angela Calle and Daniel Di Palma [CC BY-SA 4.0 (<a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)]" rel="nofollow noreferrer">https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)]</a>
<a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Valle_del_cocora_-_wax_palm_02.jpg" rel="nofollow noreferrer">https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Valle_del_cocora_-_wax_palm_02.jpg</a></p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2019-10-11T17:35:49.523Z
Look at the Wickipaedia pictures by clicking "ancient chalk figures  on English hillsides".  Everyone seems afraid to look at them. They won't bite you, honest! The most reliable evidence is the evidence of your own eyes.
Michael Walsby
CC BY-SA 4.0
2019-10-13T13:09:09.667Z
I found the Wikipedia photos by typing "ancient chalk figures on English hillsides" into my Bing search engine. There were  about a dozen of them, with high definition.. Other search engines like Chrome or Google should produce a similar result. The key question which nobody seems keen to answer, is why these 'natural earth movements' only occur on hillsides which are grazed by livestock. The very best examples I have seen look almost exactly like contour lines on a map.
Michael Walsby
<vegetation><landscape>
How did these grassy hillsides in Colombia become terraced?
FlanMan
# How did these grassy hillsides in Colombia become terraced?

(Asked by: username_0 on 2019-10-10)

In Colombia, many grassy hillsides are terraced, like in the photo below. This terracing also occurs on hillsides that never had these palm trees on them. I assume that it also occurs outside of Colombia. How does this terracing happen?

Just from my first-hand observations, I think the answer is: The terracing was formed by grazing livestock. Grazing livestock is common in these areas, and the barbed wire fence hints that it is occurring here. On flat ground, the livestock wander in random directions. On steep ground, the livestock prefer to follow the hill's contour lines, as that is the easiest path to walk, as opposed to more directly uphill or downhill. When a livestock initiates a contour path on a not-yet-terraced hillside, that path is repeatedly trod by subsequent livestock, as it is a little flatter and easier to walk than other contour paths, eventually leading to significant terracing. The terracing is uneven (not level) because the livestock have to go up or down a bit to graze elsewhere on the hill.

Can anybody confirm my answer, or provide another answer that is objectively correct, preferably with citations? I asked the same question in the form of an [SE puzzle](https://puzzling.stackexchange.com/questions/90003/how-did-these-grassy-hillsides-become-unevenly-terraced), which is currently on hold because "This question may invite speculative answers, as the question is not fully defined. The validity of some answers may be based upon opinion. Good questions for this site [[puzzling.stackexchange.com](https://puzzling.stackexchange.com/)] have a limited number of objectively correct answers." I may be able to save the puzzle with a definitive answer here.

[![Angela Calle and Daniel Di Palma [CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)]](https://i.sstatic.net/hEnmt.jpg)](https://i.sstatic.net/hEnmt.jpg)

Click for [high-resolution photo](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e4/Valle_del_cocora_-_wax_palm_02.jpg)

Photo credit:
Angela Calle and Daniel Di Palma [CC BY-SA 4.0 (<https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)]>
<https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Valle_del_cocora_-_wax_palm_02.jpg>

**Tags:** vegetation, landscape

> **Comments:**
> **username_1**: Look at the Wickipaedia pictures by clicking "ancient chalk figures  on English hillsides".  Everyone seems afraid to look at them. They won't bite you, honest! The most reliable evidence is the evidence of your own eyes.  
> **username_1**: I found the Wikipedia photos by typing "ancient chalk figures on English hillsides" into my Bing search engine. There were  about a dozen of them, with high definition.. Other search engines like Chrome or Google should produce a similar result. The key question which nobody seems keen to answer, is why these 'natural earth movements' only occur on hillsides which are grazed by livestock. The very best examples I have seen look almost exactly like contour lines on a map.  

---

## 2 answers

### Answer by username_2 on 2019-10-10. Score: 3 | Accepted answer

These are terracettes   
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terracette#targetText=In%20geomorphology%2C%20a%20terracette%20is,them%20to%20move%20slowly%20downhill>
  
 These are caused by natural earth movements as the slope angle is beyond the natural resting angle of the soil. These slopes are a result of rapid erosion e.g. by rivers and glaciers.
Solifluction <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solifluction> is a similar process.

> **Comments:**
> **username_1**: Have you ever asked yourself why these 'natural earth movements' only occur where there are grazing animals?  
> **username_3**: Since there's a disagreement between two answers here, perhaps it would be helpful if one or both of them were to give a peer-reviewed reference or two.  
> **username_1**: I'll do better than that. Rather than just quote another opinion which may well be wrong, if you click " ancient chalk figures on English hillsides" on Wickipadia, this will show you manyhillsides wit these livestock-generated contour lines on them. If you can't believe th evidence of your own eyes, what can you believe?  
> **username_4**: +1 for including links (and references therein) that back up your answer!  
> **username_3**: @username_1 a picture on Wikipedia is not "better than" a peer reviewed reference. I just did go to the Hill Figures page on Wiki, as you asked, and from a quick skim I couldn't see either terracettes *or* livestock in any of the pictures. But I admittedly didn't spend very long looking, because I don't see that this would prove anything. Seeing livestock there does not mean that they caused the structures.  
> **username_3**: (wiki links are, similarly, not good evidence for the soil creep answer either. Maybe both of these theories are true in some cases. Maybe neither is. I don't think any firm evidence has been linked by anybody here)  
> **username_1**: I wasn't talking a bout one photo, there are about a dozen there, all full of livesstock generated contour lines. If you didn't see them, no wonder you don't trust your own eyes and would rather take someone else's word for it. It will be interesting to see if anyone else has  a similar experience to yours. I rely on my eyes a lot, because I know I can trust them, but I can see why you don't trust yours.  
> **username_1**: PS I don't think grazing animals are visible in the photos, but I assure you these hills are grazed by sheep and possibly other animals. How else would the grass be kept so short? British farmers are not so mad that they would find some profitless way of mowing these hills instead of using them for grazing.  
> **username_3**: You're probably right that the hills are grazed (although I'm not sure whether grass might naturally stay short on chalk hillsides - it's terrible soil). But that *does not prove that the animals created the terracettes*. Maybe they do - *I don't know*. We have two competing explanations here, and no authoritative sources for either of them. We should, therefore, be rather cautious about declaring one of them to be correct.  

---

### Answer by username_1 on 2019-10-10. Score: 0

When I looked at your photograph it immediately occurred to me what the explanation was, but when I read your text I could see you already knew the answer. I can confirm that you are right. These contour lines appear all over the world where grazing animals are kept and there are hills to negotiate, so there is nothing unusual about them.

If you click 'ancient chalk figures on English hillsides' on Wickipaedia, you will find that almost all the chalk figures have these contour lines around them,and by some amazing coincidence all these hillsides are frequented by grazing animals! One of the best photos showing what I mean is the Long Man Of Wilmington, which not only shows clear contour lines, but shows the sheep as well.

> **Comments:**
> **username_3**: According to the Wikipedia article linked by username_2, this is an old belief that is now thought to be incorrect. (Not my field, I have no knowledge of my own to bring to bear here)  
> **username_1**: I read somewhere that, like crop circles, they are made by aliens. I don't believe it, but if you'd rather believe that, I can't  stop you.  
> **username_3**: I am not suggesting that they are made by aliens. What does that have to do with anything?  
> **username_1**: These markings have the same association with grazing animals that crop circles have with mischievous nocturnal humans. No grazing animals - no 'natural earth movements', no mischievous humans - no crop circles.  
> **username_3**: *shrug* I don't claim expertise in this area. I won't argue. But *please* only answer things that you *actually know about*. (maybe this is one of those things)  
> **username_1**: Yes, it is one of those things. I have come across the phenomenon before. The contour lines are not exclusive  to Colombia, we have them in UK too. Oddly enough, I have never heard of crop circles outside UK, though I don't say they don't exist.  

---

