Case study: river landforms - River Tees - River landforms.
An oxbow lake starts out as a curve, or meander, in a river. A lake forms as the river finds a different, shorter, course. The meander becomes an oxbow lake along the side of the river. Oxbow lakes usually form in flat, low-lying plain s close to where the river empties into another body of water.A stream flowing in a channel, on approaching the downstream region tend to follow a helical, or coiled fashion, that moves the water alternatively against both the sides of the channel. Such a stream is said to be a meandering stream. Meandering stream channels characteristically exhibit meanders.This animation shows the process of oxbow lake formation. Detailed captions and slides explain how differential flow velocities and the resulting patterns of deposition and erosion along river banks eventually lead to the development of an oxbow. Click play button to view each slide.
Near Yarm, the meanders in the lower course are much larger, and oxbow lakes have formed. In this area there are also levees which have formed when the river has flooded. The River Tees has a very.For an oxbow lake to form, first there has to be a meander. A meander forms because rivers take the easiest route through the landscape, they twist and turn cutting through softer rocks. The water flows faster on the outer edge of the bends in the meander. This causes it to further migrate and therefore there is more of a bend in the meander.
Such lakes, Ochs notes, had an entirely natural life-cycle — forming, thriving, and, in time, naturally dying. The water that runs off the surrounding terrain carries sediment, and when that water reaches an oxbow lake, the sediment settles to the bottom. Over time, the lake infills and disappears.
