What is a talus field and how is it formed?

Talus, also called scree, is a term given to an accumulation of broken rock fragments at the base of crags, mountain cliffs, or valley shoulders. Formation of scree or talus deposits results from physical and chemical weathering and erosional processes acting on a rock face. The predominant processes that degrade a rock slope include:

Mechanical weathering by ice

Chemical weathering by mineral hydration and salt deposition

Thermal stresses (heating by the Sun and cooling at night)

Topographic stresses (stress from the rock formation process)

Biotic processes (plants wedging themselves in cracks and crevasses)