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An oxbow lake is a U-shaped Lacustrine water body formed when a wide Meander from the Mainstem of a River is cut off to create a lake. This Landform is called an oxbow lake for the distinctive curved shape that results from this process. In Australia , an oxbow lake is called a Billabong . FORMATION When a river reaches a low-lying plain in its final course to the banks getting closer. The narrow neck of land between the two neighbouring concave banks is finally cut through, either by lateral erosion of the two concave banks or by the strong currents of a Flood . When this happens, a new straighter river Channel is created and an abandoned meander loop, called a cut-off, is formed. When deposition finally seals off the cut-off from the river channel, an oxbow lake is formed. This process can occur over a time scale from a few years to several decades and may sometimes become essentially static. , USA . The bulges in the border reflect changes in the course of the river; when the river shifted its course and cut off the former channel, the border did not change.]] By itself, the word oxbow can also mean a U-shaped bend in a river or stream, whether or not it is cut off from the mainstream. Ask Oxford . Merriam-Webster . EXAMPLES The Reelfoot Lake in west Tennessee is an oxbow lake formed when the Mississippi River changed course following the New Madrid Earthquake of 1811 – 1812 . There are many oxbow lakes alongside the Mississippi River and its tributaries. The largest oxbow lake in North America, Lake Chicot (located near Lake Village, Arkansas ), was originally part of the Mississippi River . The town of Horseshoe Lake, Arkansas is named after the horseshoe shaped oxbow lake at the estern tip of which the town is located. Cuckmere Haven in Sussex , England contains a widely Meander ing River with many oxbow lakes, often referred to in Physical Geography textbooks. NOTES REFERENCES |
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