Look at the photo and pinpoint the ox-bow lake. On a piece of paper, trace from the river to the ox-bow lake and try to discover what the old course of the meander may have looked like. After you have done this, turn to the person next to you and compare your work.
Feature: Delta A delta is a fan-shaped area of land found at the mouth of a river. It is a feature of river deposition. Example: An example can be seen at the Shannon estuary, Co. Limerick.
How a Delta Forms
1 When a river reaches a lake or the sea, it slows down and loses the power to carry sediment.
2 The sediment is then dropped at the mouth of the river. Some rivers drop so much sediment that waves and tides cannot carry it all away. This forms the delta.
3 The large deposits build up over time at the mouth of the river and block the river’s entry to the sea. The river then has to break through the delta in many small channels called distributaries .
Distributary channels
Shoreline Delta
River
Sea 13. How a delta forms
Working with others
Take one minute to examine this photo. Then with your partner, answer this question: What material is being deposited here to make the delta?
Question Time 1. What is a levee?
2. (a) With the aid of a labelled diagram, explain how an ox-bow lake is formed.
(b) Name the location of an ox-bow lake in Ireland.