In the UK, a slough is a muddy or marshy area (for example see the probable derivation of Slough in Berkshire and other place names called Slough).
In eastern and southeastern United States , a slough is a type of Swamp or shallow Lake system, typically formed as or by the backwater of a larger waterway. It is similar to a Bayou with trees being present (that is, a swamp), and unlike a Bog or Marsh that lacks trees.
In western U.S., a slough is a secondary Channel of a River Delta or a narrow channel in a shallow salt-water marsh, usually flushed by the Tide . While this is in essence the same application of the term as used in the eastern U.S., a singular difference is that there exist no native trees in the west that would grow out into the waterway to form a swamp.
In the northern Great Plains of the U.S. and Canada , a slough is a pond (often Alkali ne) usually the result of Glaciation (see Kettle (geology) ); also called a ''pothole'', whence ''prairie pothole region'' to describe the area where these sloughs are abundant.
