A channel system whose correlated reaches have been separated by fault slip. A fault-parallel connecting reach, abandoned reach or abrupt bend can reveal repeated strike-slip faulting. Reliable displacement measurement requires correlation of the same original channel rather than assigning every bend to tectonic displacement.
A downstream channel segment cut off from its former upstream catchment, for example by fault slip or stream capture. An abruptly terminating gully beside a fault is a candidate; a reconstructed upstream counterpart, stratigraphy or field evidence helps distinguish true beheading from an ordinary small drainage head.
A stream whose course changes direction where deformation displaces or obstructs its former route. Along a strike-slip fault, matching upstream and downstream channel segments can constrain shear sense and fault offset. A bend alone is not a unique tectonic marker: erosion, capture and pre-existing relief also alter drainage. A reliable offset estimate restores identified piercing features rather than equating all along-fault channel length to slip.
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