Even under forests, soil is eroded by rainfall. This is particularly true when human impact damages vegetation layers. We found that the erosion risk can be greatly increased by structural drip points at branches forming large drops under the tree canopy in the foliated and non-foliated seasons. Our measurements with sand-filled splash cups in Japanese beech forests showed drop energies up to 50 times greater than under freefall precipitation, indicating locally severe sediment detachment.

Landslide processes are causes of major concern to population and infrastructures on Réunion. In this study, we used data from the Copernicus Sentinel-1 satellite to map ground motion in Cirque de Salazie. We concentrate on the cyclonic season 2017–2018. Our results show ground motion in the Hell-Bourg, Ilet à Vidot, Grand-Ilet, Camp Pierrot, and Le Bélier landslides. Moreover, we show an unknown pattern of ground motion situated in a non-instrumented, uninhabited area on the ground.