( February 2019) ( Learn how and when to remove this template message) Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. Please help improve this section by adding citations to reliable sources. Channel heads associated with hollows in steep terrain frequently migrate up and down hillslopes depending on sediment supply and precipitation. Hollows form due to concentrated subsurface flows where concentrations of colluvium are in a constant flux. This often results in abrupt channel heads and landslides.

Subsurface flow destabilizes soil and resurfaces on hillslopes where channel heads are often formed. Vegetation slows infiltration rates during precipitation events and plant roots anchor soil on hillslopes. The composition of a soil determines how quickly saturation occurs and cohesive strength retards the entrainment of material from overland flows. Soil composition, vegetation, precipitation, and topography dictate the amount and rate of overland flow. Overland flows converge in topographical depressions where channel initiation begins. Overland flow is a primary factor in channel initiation where saturation overland flow deepens to increase shear stress and begin channel incision. Channel heads are often associated with colluvium, hollows and landslides. A channel head forms as overland flow and/or subsurface flow accumulate to a point where shear stress can overcome erosion resistance of the ground surface. The channel head is the most upslope part of a channel network and is defined by flowing water between defined identifiable banks. This site is referred to as the channel head and it marks an important boundary between hillslope processes and fluvial processes. Channel initiation refers to the site on a mountain slope where water begins to flow between identifiable banks.

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