Portal:Rivers
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Introduction
![A small boat (pirogue) running on the Mekong River as the sun is setting between Don Det and Don Khon, Laos.](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/77/Pirogue_running_on_the_Mekong_at_golden_hour_between_Don_Det_and_Don_Khon_Laos.jpg/290px-Pirogue_running_on_the_Mekong_at_golden_hour_between_Don_Det_and_Don_Khon_Laos.jpg)
A river is a natural freshwater stream 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 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 and merge in confluences to form drainage basins, areas where all water eventually flows to a common outlet. 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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The River Parrett flows through the counties of Dorset and Somerset in South West England, from its source in the Thorney Mills springs in the hills around Chedington in Dorset. Flowing northwest through Somerset and the Somerset Levels to its mouth at Burnham-on-Sea, into the Bridgwater Bay nature reserve on the Bristol Channel, the Parrett and its tributaries drain an area of 660 square miles (1,700 km2) – about 50 per cent of Somerset's land area, with a population of 300,000.
The Parrett's main tributaries include the Rivers Tone, Isle, and Yeo, and the River Cary via the King's Sedgemoor Drain. The 37-mile (60 km) long river is tidal for 19 miles (31 km) up to Oath. The fall of the river between Langport and Bridgwater is only 1 foot per mile (0.2 m/km), so it is prone to frequent flooding in winter and during high tides. Many approaches have been tried since at least the medieval period to reduce the incidence and effect of floods and to drain the surrounding fields. (Full article...)Selected Quote
Selected picture
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/78/Puente_de_la_Margineda%2C_Santa_Coloma%2C_Andorra%2C_2013-12-30%2C_DD_08-10_HDR.jpg/300px-Puente_de_la_Margineda%2C_Santa_Coloma%2C_Andorra%2C_2013-12-30%2C_DD_08-10_HDR.jpg)
Gran Valira river spanned by the Pont de la Margineda in Andorra
General images -
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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)The cave of
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Co-occurrence network of a bacterial community in a stream (from River ecosystem)
- Periphyton (from
- A
- A subterranean river in the
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Puerto Princesa cave can be entered by boat. (from Subterranean river)The
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New Zealand longfin eels can weigh over 50 kilograms. (from River ecosystem)
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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)The
- Different biofilm components in streams. Principal components are algae and bacteria. (from
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dispersal vectors for plant matter and invertebrates. (from River ecosystem)Flowing rivers can act as
- Whitewater at Yosemite (from
- Devil's Throat Cave subterranean river from above (from
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Rafting 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)
- Common water hyacinth in flower (from
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NSW (from River ecosystem)A pensive Cooplacurripa River,
- Leaf litter is an allochthonous energy source. (from
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Dante's Inferno, Charon ferries souls across the subterranean river Acheron. (from Subterranean river)In
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Pondweed is an autochthonous energy source. (from River ecosystem)
- Map of the world showing elevation levels (from
- This stream operating together with its environment can be thought of as forming a river ecosystem. (from
- Anthropogenic 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
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brook trout is native to small streams, creeks, lakes, and spring ponds. (from River ecosystem)The
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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)Example of a river food web.
- Rapids in
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Erzhausen, Germany (from River ecosystem)A forest stream in the winter near
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Pyrénées (from River ecosystem)Cascade in the
Did you know?
- ... that the Kettle Creek (pictured) watershed contains eight percent of the Class A Wild Trout Streams in Pennsylvania?
- ... that water from the Little Applegate River was used in the mine in Sterlingville, the largest hydraulic mine in Oregon and possibly the entire western United States?
- ... that there are at least 35 sources of acid mine drainage in the Mahanoy Creek watershed?
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Featured articles
Aliso Creek (Orange County)
Balch Creek
Big Butte Creek
Bull Run River (Oregon)
Chetco River
Colorado River
Columbia River
Columbia Slough
Fanno Creek
Johnson Creek (Willamette River tributary)
Jordan River (Utah)
Little Butte Creek
Plunketts Creek (Loyalsock Creek tributary)
River Parrett
Rogue River (Oregon)
St. Johns River
Tryon Creek
Waterfalls in Ricketts Glen State Park
White Deer Hole Creek
Willamette River
Featured lists
List of longest rivers of the United States (by main stem)
List of longest streams of Idaho
List of longest streams of Oregon
List of tributaries of Bowman Creek
List of tributaries of Catawissa Creek
List of tributaries of Larrys Creek
List of tributaries of Mahanoy Creek
List of tributaries of Shamokin Creek
Good articles
1886 St. Croix River log jam
Abrahams Creek
Adams River (British Columbia)
River Avon, Bristol
Big Wapwallopen Creek
Black Creek (Susquehanna River tributary)
Briar Creek (Susquehanna River tributary)
Brunswick Falls
Buffalo Creek (West Branch Susquehanna River tributary)
Canajoharie Creek
Catawissa Creek
Celilo Falls
Cem (river)
Chollas Creek
Cibolo Creek
Covering of the Senne
Darby Creek (Pennsylvania)
Eddy Creek (Lackawanna River tributary)
Esopus Creek
Estuaries of Texas
Everglades
Fishing Creek (North Branch Susquehanna River tributary)
Flushing River
Fonteyn Kill
Fossil Creek
River Frome, Bristol
Gowanus Canal
Great Zab
Hammersley Fork
Harveys Creek
Hudson River
Hull Creek (Lackawanna River tributary)
River Hull
Hunlock Creek
River Irwell
Islais Creek
Ithan Creek
Jiloca (river)
Kaweah River
Kettle Creek (Pennsylvania)
Keyser Creek
Kings River (California)
Kissena Creek
Klamath River
Kootenay River
Laguna Canyon
Leggetts Creek
Little Applegate River
Little Catawissa Creek
Little Fishing Creek
Little Wapwallopen Creek
Mahanoy Creek
Mahoning Creek (Susquehanna River tributary)
Meadow Brook (Lackawanna River tributary)
Merced River
Messers Run
Minetta Creek
Minnehaha Park (Minneapolis)
Missouri River
Moston Brook
Mud Creek (Chillisquaque Creek tributary)
Muncy Creek
Nanticoke Creek
Neepaulakating Creek
Nescopeck Creek
Ombla
Petitcodiac River
Potlatch River
River Arun
River Brue
River
River Tone
River Torrens
River Weaver
Roaring Brook (Lackawanna River tributary)
Roaring Creek (Pennsylvania)
River Rother, East Sussex
River Rother, West Sussex
San Juan Creek
Santa Ana River
Sava
Saw Mill River
Scotch Run (Catawissa Creek tributary)
Severn bore
Shickshinny Creek
Shimna River
Shinano River
Snake River
Solomon Creek
Spring Brook (Lackawanna River tributary)
Stafford Meadow Brook
Stanislaus River
Stikine River
Stony Brook (Charles River tributary, Boston)
Sulphur Creek (California)
Tangascootack Creek
Toby Creek
Trinity River (California)
River Trym
Twomile Run
Wainui Falls
River Welland
West Branch Fishing Creek
West Creek (Pennsylvania)
West Kill
River Witham
Yellala Falls
Zarqa River
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- Join WikiProject Rivers
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{{Portal|Rivers}}
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