Why do Rivers Curve?



Rivers become curvier and curvier until they bump into themselves. Then, lakes follow the route of least resistance and connect to form a straighter route. What’s left over is called an Oxbow lake… but they go by a lot of different names.

In Australia they are referred to as Billabongs; in South Texas, they are called resacas, sometimes they are called ‘horseshoe lakes’.

Do you have a special term for them in your country?

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35 Comments

  1. So, I’ve been out of high school geography for so long that it completely slipped my mind how Lake Eerie in Pennsylvania is one of the Great Lakes. I went there for the first time this summer with my cousins. Saying that it’s massive is an understatement. I live on a Peninsula in Virginia and I have beaches within 20 minutes each direction from my house, but even I was taken aback by how the water just never seemed to end. When my cousins told me that the only thing on the other side was Canada, my mind nearly exploded on the sand 🤯😅

  2. Oxbow Lakes by Mr Weebl

    Oxbow lakes are formed when a river's meander
    gets too wibbly, wibbly, wobbly to maintain the course it's on
    The main flow of the stream diverts itself accordingly
    Leaving the oxbow lake behind but here's my question son.

    What the hell's an Oxbow?
    Are our bovine friends fashioning weaponry
    Someone should tell me
    Do I need to buy a shield

    Oxes just ain't known for their
    Dexterous ability
    You need to watch out for them
    Or you might lose an eye.

  3. well, if she won’t tell u i will, so pretty much they curve because the river water goes through the soft rock underneath the soil, as it erodes the softer rock quicker than the harder rock in front, and carries on that process until the harder rock is eroded which is why they bump

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