Search results
Results from the WOW.Com Content Network
Freshwater ecosystems are a subset of Earth's aquatic ecosystems that include the biological communities inhabiting freshwater waterbodies such as lakes, ponds, rivers, streams, springs, bogs, and wetlands. [1] They can be contrasted with marine ecosystems, which have a much higher salinity. Freshwater habitats can be classified by different ...
The morphometry of a body of water depends on the type of feature (such as a lake, river, stream, wetland, estuary etc.) and the structure of the earth surrounding the body of water. Lakes, for instance, are classified by their formation, and zones of lakes are defined by water depth. [14] [15] River and stream system morphometry is driven by ...
Fresh water may encompass frozen and meltwater in ice sheets, ice caps, glaciers, snowfields and icebergs, natural precipitations such as rainfall, snowfall, hail/sleet and graupel, and surface runoffs that form inland bodies of water such as wetlands, ponds, lakes, rivers, streams, as well as groundwater contained in aquifers, subterranean ...
a narrow channel of water that connects two larger bodies of water, and thus lies between two land masses. Stream: a body of water with a detectable current, confined within a bed and banks. Stream pool: a stretch of a river or stream in which the water is relatively deep and slow moving. Streamlet: a small stream; rivulet. [38] Subglacial lake
The food base of streams within riparian forests is mostly derived from the trees, but wider streams and those that lack a canopy derive the majority of their food base from algae. Anadromous fish are also an important source of nutrients. Environmental threats to rivers include loss of water, dams, chemical pollution and introduced species. [12]
Lakes and ponds experience much of the same pollution as rivers and streams, but are polluted at a quicker rate due to slower moving waters, no water flow outlets, and amount of water. [16] Standing water circulates much less than moving waters, with the deeper water layers only moving during seasonal changes twice a year. [ 16 ]
As the summer begins, two distinct layers become established, with such a large temperature difference between them that they remain stratified. The lowest zone in the lake is the coldest and is called the hypolimnion. The upper warm zone is called the epilimnion. Between these zones is a band of rapid temperature change called the thermocline ...
Permanent rivers and streams; includes waterfalls; Seasonal and irregular rivers and streams; Inland deltas (permanent) Riverine floodplains; includes river flats, flooded river basins, seasonally flooded grassland, savanna and palm savanna; Permanent freshwater lakes (> 8 ha); includes large oxbow lakes