Gully erosion is an important environmental threat throughout the world and affects multiple soil and land functions. There is ample physical evidence of intense gully erosion occurring at various times in the past in different parts of the world. Gullies are one of the few sources of morphological evidence in the landscape of past phases of intense soil erosion, reflecting the impact of environmental change (especially due to interactions between geomorphological features, changes in land use and extreme climatic events). Gully erosion represents a major sediment source, although gully channels often occupy\5% of the area of a catchment. The development of gullies increases run-off and sediment connectivity in the landscape, hence increasing the risk of flooding and reservoir sedimentation (Verstraeten and Poesen 1999; Poesen et al. 2003). Assessing interactions between environmental change and land degradation is a key issue for environmental scientists, land managers and policy-makers.