Portal:Rivers

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The Rivers Portal

Introduction

A river is a natural stream of fresh water that flows on land or inside caves towards another body of water at a lower elevation, such as an ocean, lake, or another river. A river may run dry before reaching the end of its course if it runs out of water, or only flow during certain seasons. Rivers are regulated by the water cycle, the processes by which water moves around the Earth. Water first enters rivers through precipitation, whether from rainfall, the runoff of water down a slope, the melting of glaciers or snow, or seepage from aquifers beneath the surface of the Earth.

Rivers flow in channeled watercourses and merge in confluences to form drainage basins, areas where surface water eventually flows to a common outlet. Drainage divides keep rivers separated from other courses of water and causes upstream water within the confines of the divide to fall into the downhill stream. Rivers have a great effect on the landscape around them. They may regularly overflow their banks and flood the surrounding area, spreading nutrients to the surrounding area. Sediment or alluvium carried by rivers shapes the landscape around it, forming deltas and islands where the flow slows down. Rivers rarely run in a straight line, instead, they bend or meander; the locations of a river's banks can change frequently. Rivers get their alluvium from erosion, which carves rock into canyons and valleys.

Rivers have sustained human and animal life for millennia, including the first human civilizations. The organisms that live around or in a river such as fish, aquatic plants, and insects have different roles, including processing organic matter and predation. Rivers have produced abundant resources for humans, including food, transportation, drinking water, and recreation. Humans have engineered rivers to prevent flooding, irrigate crops, perform work with water wheels, and produce hydroelectricity from dams. People associate rivers with life and fertility and have strong religious, political, social, and mythological attachments to them. (Full article...)

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Scotch Run at Mifflin Cross Roads

Scotch Run is one of the main tributaries of Catawissa Creek in Columbia County, Pennsylvania, in the United States. It is approximately 7.8 miles (12.6 km) long and flows through Beaver Township and Main Township. The stream's watershed has an area of 9.10 square miles (23.6 km²). The stream is infertile and acidic. It is 7.2 feet (2.2 m) wide in its upper reaches and 17.0 feet (5.2 m) wide in its lower reaches. The main rock formations in the watershed include the Mauch Chunk Formation, the Pocono Formation, the Pottsville Formation, and the Spechty Kopf Formation. The main soils include Leck Kill soil and Hazleton soil. It flows between Nescopeck Mountain and McCauley Mountain.

Nearly all of Scotch Run's length is within 1,640 feet (500 m) of a road. However, most of its length is not within 328 feet (100 m) of one. Part of Pennsylvania State Game Lands Number 58 is in the watershed and ephemeral natural pool system is located near the stream. The area in the vicinity of the stream was settled relatively late compared to the surrounding areas. The Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission carried out a survey of the creek in 1977. Scotch Run is designated as a Coldwater Fishery and a Migratory Fishery. In 1997, three species of fish were observed in the upper reaches of the stream, while eight species were observed in the lower reaches. Both reaches contained brown trout and brook trout. There is a hemlock-mixed hardwood palustrine forest along the stream. (Full article...)

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A river is more than an amenity, it is a treasure.

— Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr., Speaking About the Delaware River, 1931

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Photograph: Ansel Adams

The Tetons and the Snake River (1942)

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The following are images from various river-related articles on Wikipedia.

Image 1Cascade in the Pyrénées (from River ecosystem)
Image 2Whitewater at Yosemite (from Whitewater)
Image 3A subterranean river in the Cross Cave system of Slovenia. (Scale shown by people in photograph.) (from Subterranean river)
Image 4A forest stream in the winter near Erzhausen, Germany (from River ecosystem)
Image 5The Effra is one of the subterranean rivers of London. It empties into the Thames by Vauxhall Bridge, from which this photograph was taken. (from Subterranean river)
Image 6Anthropogenic influences on river systems. Examples are mainly from settings with a modest technological influence, especially in the period of about 10,000 to 4000 cal yr BP. (from River ecosystem)
Image 7A whitewater canoe with yellow air bags. (from Whitewater)
Image 8Flowing rivers can act as dispersal vectors for plant matter and invertebrates. (from River ecosystem)
Image 9The Puerto Princesa cave can be entered by boat. (from Subterranean river)
Image 10In Dante's Inferno, Charon ferries souls across the subterranean river Acheron. (from Subterranean river)
Image 11Castle Geyser, Yellowstone National Park (from River ecosystem)
Image 12Leaf litter is an allochthonous energy source. (from River ecosystem)
Image 13Rapids in Mount Robson Provincial Park (from River ecosystem)
Image 14Example of a river food web. Bacteria can be seen in the red box at the bottom. Bacteria (and other decomposers, like worms) decompose and recycle nutrients back to the habitat, which is shown by the light blue arrows. Without bacteria, the rest of the food web would starve, because there would not be enough nutrients for the animals higher up in the food web. The dark orange arrows show how some animals consume others in the food web. For example, lobsters may be eaten by humans. The dark blue arrows represent one complete food chain, beginning with the consumption of algae by the water flea, Daphnia, which is consumed by a small fish, which is consumed by a larger fish, which is at the end consumed by the great blue heron. (from River ecosystem)
Image 15Common water hyacinth in flower (from River ecosystem)
Image 16Different biofilm components in streams. Principal components are algae and bacteria. (from River ecosystem)
Image 17Pondweed is an autochthonous energy source. (from River ecosystem)
Image 18Map of the world showing elevation levels (from Upland and lowland)
Image 19A pensive Cooplacurripa River, NSW (from River ecosystem)
Image 20Rafting is a watersport where buoyancy aids, helmets and wetsuits are mandatory and often imposed by law, due to the constant risk of falling off the boat and into the rapids (from Whitewater)
Image 21New Zealand longfin eels can weigh over 50 kilograms. (from River ecosystem)
Image 22The cave of source of the Buna can be entered by boat and dived through a cave system serving as an effluence of the Zalomka. (from Subterranean river)
Image 23Devil's Throat Cave subterranean river from above (from Subterranean river)
Image 24This stream operating together with its environment can be thought of as forming a river ecosystem. (from River ecosystem)
Image 25The brook trout is native to small streams, creeks, lakes, and spring ponds. (from River ecosystem)
Image 26A weir on the River Calder, West Yorkshire (from River ecosystem)
Image 27Periphyton (from River ecosystem)
Image 28Co-occurrence network of a bacterial community in a stream (from River ecosystem)

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Did you know?

... that the River Poddle, the main water source of the city of Dublin for over 500 years, was later so polluted by industry that it allegedly killed cattle and horses drinking from it?
... that six different dams were proposed for the lower Sanpoil River?
... that radio station WWBC in Cocoa, Florida, was forced to remove its transmitter tower from the Indian River when the site was sold to condominium developers?

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Mississippi River at Vicksburg, Mississippi

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Topics

v t e Rivers, streams and springs
Rivers (lists)	Alluvial river Braided river Blackwater river Channel Channel pattern Channel types Confluence Distributary Drainage basin Mountain river Subterranean river River bifurcation River ecosystem River source Tributary
Streams	Arroyo Beck Bourne Burn Chalk stream Coulee Current Stream bed Stream channel Streamflow Stream gradient Stream pool Perennial stream Winterbourne
Springs (list)	Estavelle/Inversac Geyser Holy well Hot spring list list in the US Karst spring list Mineral spring Ponor Rhythmic spring Spring horizon
Sedimentary processes and erosion	Abrasion Anabranch Aggradation Armor Bed load Bed material load Granular flow Debris flow Deposition Dissolved load Downcutting Erosion Headward erosion Knickpoint Palaeochannel Progradation Retrogradation Saltation Secondary flow Sediment transport Suspended load Wash load Water gap
Fluvial landforms	Ait Alluvial fan Antecedent drainage stream Avulsion Bank Bar Bayou Billabong Canyon Chine Cut bank Estuary Floating island Fluvial terrace Gill Gulch Gully Glen Meander scar Mouth bar Oxbow lake Riffle-pool sequence Point bar Ravine Rill River island Rock-cut basin Sedimentary basin Sedimentary structures Strath Thalweg River valley Wadi
Fluvial flow	Helicoidal flow International scale of river difficulty Log jam Meander Plunge pool Rapids Riffle Shoal Stream capture Waterfall list of waterfalls Whitewater
Surface runoff	Agricultural wastewater First flush Urban runoff
Floods and stormwater	100-year flood Crevasse splay Flash flood Flood Urban flooding Non-water flood Flood barrier Flood control Flood forecasting Flood-meadow Floodplain Flood pulse concept Flooded grasslands and savannas Inundation Storm Water Management Model Return period
Point source pollution	Effluent Industrial wastewater Sewage
River measurement and modelling	Baer's law Baseflow Bradshaw model Discharge (hydrology) Drainage density Exner equation Groundwater model Hack's law Hjulström curve Hydrograph Hydrological model Hydrological transport model Infiltration (hydrology) Main stem Playfair's law Relief ratio River Continuum Concept Rouse number Runoff curve number Runoff model (reservoir) Stream gauge Universal Soil Loss Equation WAFLEX Wetted perimeter Volumetric flow rate
River engineering	Aqueduct Balancing lake Canal Check dam Dam Drop structure Daylighting Detention basin Erosion control Fish ladder Floodplain restoration Flume Infiltration basin Leat Levee River morphology Retention basin Revetment Riparian-zone restoration Stream restoration Weir
River sports	Canyoning Fly fishing Rafting River surfing Riverboarding Stone skipping Triathlon Whitewater canoeing Whitewater kayaking Whitewater slalom
Related	Aquifer Aquatic toxicology Body of water Hydraulic civilization Limnology Riparian zone River valley civilization River cruise Sacred waters Surface water Wild river
Rivers by length Rivers by discharge rate Drainage basins Whitewater rivers Flash floods River name etymologies Countries without rivers

v t e River morphology
Large-scale features	Alluvial plain Drainage basin Drainage system (geomorphology) Estuary Strahler number (stream order) River valley River delta River sinuosity
Alluvial rivers	Anabranch Avulsion (river) Bar (river morphology) Braided river Channel pattern Cut bank Floodplain Meander Meander cutoff Mouth bar Oxbow lake Point bar Riffle Rapids Riparian zone River bifurcation River channel migration River mouth Slip-off slope Stream pool Thalweg
Bedrock river	Canyon Knickpoint Plunge pool
Bedforms	Ait Antidune Dune Current ripple
Regional processes	Aggradation Base level Degradation (geology) Erosion and tectonics River rejuvenation
Mechanics	Deposition (geology) Water erosion Exner equation Hack's law Helicoidal flow Playfair's law Sediment transport List of rivers that have reversed direction
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