Hoodoo near Wahweap Creek, Page, Arizona. Wind erosion also plays a role, creating structures such as hoodoos - spindly rock towers that rise over the landscape like giants. After the climate becomes arid, periodic rains will cause flash floods and rapid erosion that carves out canyons, gullies, and drainage basins. These landscapes are formed as sediment is deposited in rivers, oceans, tropical environments, lakes, and deltas. Badlands terrain consists of thick layers of soft sedimentary rock and soils that have been eroded over time by wind and rain to create fantastic geologic landscapes and features. Southeastern Alberta is characterized by badlands terrain. The Badlands Guardian feature is actually a drainage basin which was probably created during a period of rapid erosion. Giant Face-like Rock Formations and a Rock Shrine Found in Bulgaria.‘Mars Rat’ is Taking the Internet by Storm.Mysterious, Giant Face Found on Cliff in Canada-Man-Made or Natural?.After the feature became widely known it was eventually dubbed the “Badlands Guardian.” Duane Froese, a professor of Geology at the University of Alberta, commented on the feature saying that Hickox was lucky to have found it. She shared it with friends on the Google Earth forum. She was looking for directions to a paleontology museum when the feature “jumped out” at her as she puts it. The feature was discovered by Lynn Hickox, an armchair explorer using Google Earth to search for interesting features. It is an example of pareidolia, a phenomenon which causes humans to see meaningful patterns where none exist. Observers have also noticed that a road leading to a natural gas well makes it appear as if the figure is wearing earphones connected to an iPod.Īlthough the feature looks very much like a carved head, it is in fact a natural feature created by erosion from wind and rain of the soft soil composed of sand, silt, and clay. Amidst the rugged terrain of the badlands of southeastern Alberta, Canada is a geologic feature that, from the air, bears a striking resemblance to an indigenous Canadian wearing a headdress.