WATERUnit Part Two Study GuideTest date: December __8___

Chapter OneLentic and Lotic Systems (Rivers, Lakes, Ponds,and Wetlands)

Lentic: Usually refers to fresh water systems that stands relatively still such as a pond, lake, or wetland

Lotic: Usually refers to fresh water system that is moving such as a stream, river, or creek

In this second part of our study of Water, you have learned the information needed to answer these LEQs so far:

  • What factors affect where rain (runoff) goes?
  • How does topography determine the flow of water in a watershed?

On your test, you will be expected to answer in an essay either of the underlined LEQs above. Practice both.

Example 1 response: There are three factors that determine where rain (runoff) will go.

One factor is the nature of the ground surface. Runoff will soak more easily into a grassy area rather than a paved area. The rate of rainfall is another factor that may affect if the water will be able to soak into the ground or runoff flooding an area due to a heavy downpour. Finally, the third factor is if the runoff falls onto an area that is hilly or flat. Rain falling over a steep area will runoff quickly rather than soaking in slowly in a flatter area. These factors all affect runoff.

Example 2 response: Topography is the main reason that determines how water will flow in a watershed. Due to gravity, water will always flow from an area of high elevation to low elevation. The rocky mountainous areas (the divide) will cause water to run downhill faster in its narrow channel then slowing as it widens into land that is flatter and lower and finally ends up in dumping into the ocean at its mouth.

You are expected to know the following big ideas as well as the vocabulary that follows each section below. Big Idea information is often assessed in the form of true/false, fill in the blank or multiple choice questions.

Chapter Two

Section One BIG IDEASStreams and Rivers

  1. Runoff from precipitation forms streams, which flow together to form rivers. Freshwater on the move is classified as a lotic system.
  2. Rivers wear away landforms through erosion and build new ones through deposition.
  3. Gravity carries water through a river system from high elevations to low elevation.
  4. Three factors that affect the velocity (speed) of a riverarevolume of water, width of a channel, andelevation

VOCAB

Tributary –a smaller stream or river that feeds into (contributes) a main river

Watershed –the land area that supplies water to a river system (AKA drainage basin)

Divide –a ridge of land that separates one watershed from another (mountain range)

Erosion –the process by which fragments of soil and rock are broken off from the ground surface and carried away (eraser)

Deposition –the process by which soil and fragments of rock are deposited in a new location (dirt piles)

Sediments- the particles of rock and soil that are moved by water or wind, resulting in erosion and deposition

Headwaters –the many small streams that come together at the source (start) of the river

Flood Plain –a broad, flat valley through which a river flows

Meander –a looping curve formed in a river as it winds through its flood plain

Oxbow Lake –the crescent-shaped, cutoff body of water that remains after a river carves a new channel

Delta –the area of sediment deposits that build up near a river’s mouth

Mouth - the point where the river flows into another body of water (such as dumping into the ocean)

Levee- abank built along a river to prevent flooding (manmade or natural)

Section Two BIG IDEAS Ponds and Lakes

  1. Ponds and Lakes are bodies of standing water that form when fresh water collects in depressions in the land.
  2. Ponds and Lakes can be formed in five different ways: oxbow lake, glacier-carved, old volcano craters, moving plates on Earth’s crust, and man-made reservoirs, such as Memorial Lake nearby.
  3. Eutrophication can be a major problem for moving or standing water. An excess of nutrients causes the lake or river to become overgrown with algae eventually sapping out the oxygen and creating a dead zone, areas where little or no life can thrive. Entire ponds have disappeared due to this event. Excess nutrients are the number one problem for the Chesapeake Bay. This problem is caused by both man-made and naturalfactors therefore difficult to eliminate.
  4. Freshwater that stands or settles into areas of low depression are classified as lentic systems.

VOCAB

Reservoir – a natural or artificial lake that stores water human use

Eutrophication – the process by which nutrients in a lake build up over time, causing an increase in the growth of algae, eventually filling in the lake or pond. Can also be a problem at the end of rivers (dead zones)caused by natural and unnatural causes.

Section Three BIG IDEAS Wetland Environments

  1. Wetlands provide nesting and feeding areas for birds and other wildlife. Wetlands also filter water and help control floods. In addition, a number of plants grown in the wetland can help remove toxins in the water.

VOCAB

Wetland – an area of land that is covered with a shallow layer of water during some or all of the year.

Marsh – periodically floods with water; filled with non-woody plants (often grasses) adapted to wet soil (can be fresh water or brackish – a mixture of fresh and salty water).

Bog – acidic; tend to covered with sphagnum moss and surrounded by evergreen trees and shrubs. You will find peat (baby form of coal) deposits there.

Swamp-often fed by rain, many trees and shrubs, doesn’t have to be wet all year. In South cypress trees are abundant.

Estuary- very special ecosystem only found where freshwater rivers run into salt water; very rich in nutrients; some special organisms that live there can’t live anywhere else.

Chesapeake Bay is the largest estuary in North America.

Important Information about the test: Much of the test will be matching for vocabulary so practice, practice, practice! We have used these terms over and over again in class. In addition, some vocabulary will be in the form of a fill-in the blank or multiple choice questions. There will also be five true/ false questions centering around the big ideas in this study guide. You will be expected to list at least three functions of a wetland, provide an example of a lotic system and a lentic system, interpret a topographic map, and finally, one portion of the test will involve your analyzing a diagram to answer questions about a watershed. Be sure to review your class notes along with any labs. Good luck!