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Braided river
A network of river channels separated by small, and often temporary, islands

A braided river (also called braided channel or braided stream) consists of a network of river channels separated by small, often temporary, islands called braid bars or, in British English usage, aits or eyots.

Braided streams tend to occur in rivers with high sediment loads or coarse grain sizes, and in rivers with steeper slopes than typical rivers with straight or meandering channel patterns. They are also associated with rivers with rapid and frequent variation in the amount of water they carry, i.e., with "flashy" rivers, and with rivers with weak banks.

Braided channels are found in a variety of environments all over the world, including gravelly mountain streams, sand bed rivers, on alluvial fans, on river deltas, and across depositional plains.

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Description

A braided river consists of a network of multiple shallow channels that diverge and rejoin around ephemeral braid bars. This gives the river a fancied resemblance to the interwoven strands of a braid.23 The braid bars, also known as channel bars,4 branch islands,5 or accreting islands, are usually unstable and may be completely covered at times of high water.6 The channels and braid bars are usually highly mobile, with the river layout often changing significantly during flood events.7 When the islets separating channels are stabilized by vegetation, so that they are more permanent features, they are sometimes called aits or eyots.8

A braided river differs from a meandering river, which has a single sinuous channel. It is also distinct from an anastomosing river, which consist of multiple interweaving semi-permanent channels which are separated by floodplain rather than channel bars; these channels may themselves be braided.9

Formation

The physical processes that determine whether a river will be braided or meandering are not fully understood.1011 However, there is wide agreement that a river becomes braided when it carries an abundant supply of sediments.121314

Experiments with flumes suggest that a river becomes braided when a threshold level of sediment load or slope is reached. On timescales long enough for the river to evolve, a sustained increase in sediment load will increase the bed slope of the river, so that a variation of slope is equivalent to a variation in sediment load, provided the amount of water carried by the river is unchanged. A threshold slope was experimentally determined to be 0.016 (ft/ft) for a 0.15 cu ft/s (0.0042 m3/s) stream with poorly sorted coarse sand. Any slope over this threshold created a braided stream, while any slope under the threshold created a meandering stream or – for very low slopes – a straight channel. Also important to channel development is the proportion of suspended load sediment to bed load. An increase in suspended sediment allowed for the deposition of fine erosion-resistant material on the inside of a curve, which accentuated the curve and in some instances, caused a river to shift from a braided to a meandering profile.15

These experimental results were expressed in formulas relating the critical slope for braiding to the discharge and grain size. The higher the discharge, the lower the critical slope, while larger grain size yields a higher critical slope. However, these give only an incomplete picture,16 and numerical simulations have become increasingly important for understanding braided rivers.1718

Aggradation (net deposition of sediments) favors braided rivers, but is not essential. For example, the Rakaia and Waitaki Rivers of New Zealand are not aggrading, due to retreating shorelines, but are nonetheless braided rivers. Variable discharge has also been identified as important in braided rivers,19 but this may be primarily due to the tendency for frequent floods to reduce bank vegetation and destabilize the banks, rather than because variable discharge is an essential part of braided river formation.20

Numerical models suggest that bedload transport (movement of sediment particles by rolling or bouncing along the river bottom) is essential to formation of braided rivers, with net erosion of sediments at channel divergences and net deposition at convergences. Braiding is reliably reproduced in simulations whenever there is little lateral constraint on flow and there is significant bedload transport. Braiding is not observed in simulations of the extreme cases of pure scour (no deposition taking place), which produces a dendritic system, or of cohesive sediments with no bedload transport. Meanders fully develop only when the river banks are sufficiently stabilized to limit lateral flow.21 An increase in suspended sediment relative to bedload allows the deposition of fine erosion-resistant material on the inside of a curve, which accentuated the curve and in some instances, causes a river to shift from a braided to a meandering profile.22 A stream with cohesive banks that are resistant to erosion will form narrow, deep, meandering channels, whereas a stream with highly erodible banks will form wide, shallow channels, preventing the helical flow of the water necessary for meandering and resulting in the formation of braided channels.23

Occurrences

Braided rivers occur in many environments, but are most common in wide valleys associated with mountainous regions or their piedmonts24 or in areas of coarse-grained sediments and limited growth of vegetation near the river banks.25 They are also found on fluvial (stream-dominated) alluvial fans.26 Extensive braided river systems are found in Alaska, Canada, New Zealand's South Island, and the Himalayas, which all contain young, rapidly eroding mountains.

  • The enormous Brahmaputra river in Northeastern India is a classic example of a braided river.27
  • A notable example of a large braided stream in the contiguous United States is the Platte River in central and western Nebraska.28 Platte-type braided rivers are characterized by abundant linguoid (tonguelike) bar and dune deposits.29
  • The Scott River of southern Alaska is the type for braided glacial outwash rivers characterized by longitudinal gravel bars and by sand lenses deposited in scours from times of high water.30
  • The Donjek River of the Yukon Basin is the type for braided rivers showing repeated cycles of deposition, with finer sediments towards the top of each cycle.31
  • The Bijou Creek of Colorado is the type for braided rivers characterized by laminated sand deposits emplaced during floods.32
  • A portion of the lower Yellow River takes a braided form.33
  • The Sewanee Conglomerate, a Pennsylvanian coarse sandstone and conglomerate unit34 present on the Cumberland Plateau near the University of the South, may have been deposited by an ancient braided and meandering river that once existed in the eastern United States.35 Others have interpreted the depositional environment for this unit as a tidal delta.36
  • The Tagliamento of Italy is an example of a gravel bed braided river.37
  • The Piave, also in Italy, is an example of a river that is transitioning from braided to meandering due to human interventions.38
  • The Waimakariri River of New Zealand is an example of a braided river with an extensive floodplain.39

See also

  • Anabranch – A section of a river or stream that diverts from the main channel and rejoins it downstream
  • Lagoon – Shallow body of water separated from a larger one by a narrow landform
  • Shoal – Natural submerged sandbank that rises from a body of water to near the surface

Further reading

  • Hibbert, Barry; Brown, Kerry, eds. (2001). Braided River Field Guide. Christchurch, N.Z.: Department of Conservation. ISBN 9780478221213.
  • Media related to Braided rivers at Wikimedia Commons

References

  1. Bristow, C. S.; Best, J. L. (1 January 1993). "Braided rivers: perspectives and problems". Geological Society, London, Special Publications. 75 (1): 1–11. Bibcode:1993GSLSP..75....1B. doi:10.1144/GSL.SP.1993.075.01.01. S2CID 129232374. /wiki/Bibcode_(identifier) ↩

  2. Jackson, Julia A., ed. (1997). "braided stream". Glossary of geology (Fourth ed.). Alexandria, Virginia: American Geological Institute. ISBN 0922152349. 0922152349 ↩

  3. Leeder, M. R. (2011). Sedimentology and sedimentary basins : from turbulence to tectonics (2nd ed.). Chichester, West Sussex, UK: Wiley-Blackwell. pp. 247–252. ISBN 9781405177832. 9781405177832 ↩

  4. Jackson 1997, "channel bar". - Jackson, Julia A., ed. (1997). "braided stream". Glossary of geology (Fourth ed.). Alexandria, Virginia: American Geological Institute. ISBN 0922152349. ↩

  5. Jackson 1997, "branch island". - Jackson, Julia A., ed. (1997). "braided stream". Glossary of geology (Fourth ed.). Alexandria, Virginia: American Geological Institute. ISBN 0922152349. ↩

  6. Leeder, M. R. (2011). Sedimentology and sedimentary basins : from turbulence to tectonics (2nd ed.). Chichester, West Sussex, UK: Wiley-Blackwell. pp. 247–252. ISBN 9781405177832. 9781405177832 ↩

  7. Hickin, E; Sichingabula, H (1988). "The geomorphic impact of the catastrophic October 1984 flood on the planform of the Squamish River, southwestern British Columbia". Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences. 25 (7): 1078–1087. Bibcode:1988CaJES..25.1078H. doi:10.1139/e88-105. /wiki/Bibcode_(identifier) ↩

  8. Allaby, Michael (2013). A dictionary of geology and earth sciences (Fourth ed.). Oxford: Oxford University Press. ISBN 9780199653065. 9780199653065 ↩

  9. Leeder, M. R. (2011). Sedimentology and sedimentary basins : from turbulence to tectonics (2nd ed.). Chichester, West Sussex, UK: Wiley-Blackwell. pp. 247–252. ISBN 9781405177832. 9781405177832 ↩

  10. Leeder 2011, p. 248. - Leeder, M. R. (2011). Sedimentology and sedimentary basins : from turbulence to tectonics (2nd ed.). Chichester, West Sussex, UK: Wiley-Blackwell. pp. 247–252. ISBN 9781405177832. ↩

  11. Murray, A. Brad; Paola, Chris (September 1994). "A cellular model of braided rivers". Nature. 371 (6492): 54–57. Bibcode:1994Natur.371...54M. doi:10.1038/371054a0. S2CID 4276051. /wiki/Bibcode_(identifier) ↩

  12. Jackson, Julia A., ed. (1997). "braided stream". Glossary of geology (Fourth ed.). Alexandria, Virginia: American Geological Institute. ISBN 0922152349. 0922152349 ↩

  13. Leeder 2011, p. 248. - Leeder, M. R. (2011). Sedimentology and sedimentary basins : from turbulence to tectonics (2nd ed.). Chichester, West Sussex, UK: Wiley-Blackwell. pp. 247–252. ISBN 9781405177832. ↩

  14. Gray, D.; Harding, J.S. (2007). "Braided river ecology: A literature review of physical habitats and aquatic invertebrate communities" (PDF). Science for Conservation (279). Retrieved 9 May 2022. https://dcon01mstr0c21wprod.azurewebsites.net/globalassets/documents/science-and-technical/sfc279.pdf ↩

  15. Schumm, S; Kahn, H (1972). "Experimental Study of Channel Patterns". Bulletin of the Geological Society of America. 83 (6): 1755–1770. doi:10.1130/0016-7606(1972)83[1755:esocp]2.0.co;2. /wiki/Doi_(identifier) ↩

  16. Leeder 2011, p. 248. - Leeder, M. R. (2011). Sedimentology and sedimentary basins : from turbulence to tectonics (2nd ed.). Chichester, West Sussex, UK: Wiley-Blackwell. pp. 247–252. ISBN 9781405177832. ↩

  17. Williams, Richard D.; Brasington, James; Hicks, D. Murray (March 2016). "Numerical Modelling of Braided River Morphodynamics: Review and Future Challenges: Modelling Braided River Morphodynamics" (PDF). Geography Compass. 10 (3): 102–127. doi:10.1111/gec3.12260. http://eprints.gla.ac.uk/114536/7/114536.pdf ↩

  18. Murray, A. Brad; Paola, Chris (September 1994). "A cellular model of braided rivers". Nature. 371 (6492): 54–57. Bibcode:1994Natur.371...54M. doi:10.1038/371054a0. S2CID 4276051. /wiki/Bibcode_(identifier) ↩

  19. Leopold, L.B.; Wolman, M.G. (1957). "River channel patterns: Braiding, meandering, and straight". U.S. Geological Survey Professional Papers. Professional Paper. 282-B: 39–85. doi:10.3133/pp282B. https://doi.org/10.3133%2Fpp282B ↩

  20. Williams, Brasington & Hicks 2016, p. 104. - Williams, Richard D.; Brasington, James; Hicks, D. Murray (March 2016). "Numerical Modelling of Braided River Morphodynamics: Review and Future Challenges: Modelling Braided River Morphodynamics" (PDF). Geography Compass. 10 (3): 102–127. doi:10.1111/gec3.12260. http://eprints.gla.ac.uk/114536/7/114536.pdf ↩

  21. Murray, A. Brad; Paola, Chris (September 1994). "A cellular model of braided rivers". Nature. 371 (6492): 54–57. Bibcode:1994Natur.371...54M. doi:10.1038/371054a0. S2CID 4276051. /wiki/Bibcode_(identifier) ↩

  22. Schumm, S; Kahn, H (1972). "Experimental Study of Channel Patterns". Bulletin of the Geological Society of America. 83 (6): 1755–1770. doi:10.1130/0016-7606(1972)83[1755:esocp]2.0.co;2. /wiki/Doi_(identifier) ↩

  23. Easterbrook, Don J. (1999). Surface processes and landforms (2nd ed.). Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Prentice Hall. ISBN 978-0138609580. 978-0138609580 ↩

  24. Williams, Brasington & Hicks 2016, p. 104. - Williams, Richard D.; Brasington, James; Hicks, D. Murray (March 2016). "Numerical Modelling of Braided River Morphodynamics: Review and Future Challenges: Modelling Braided River Morphodynamics" (PDF). Geography Compass. 10 (3): 102–127. doi:10.1111/gec3.12260. http://eprints.gla.ac.uk/114536/7/114536.pdf ↩

  25. Ashmore, P. (2013). "9.17 Morphology and Dynamics of Braided Rivers". Treatise on Geomorphology: 289–312. doi:10.1016/B978-0-12-374739-6.00242-6. ISBN 9780080885223. 9780080885223 ↩

  26. Boggs, Sam Jr. (2006). Principles of sedimentology and stratigraphy (4th ed.). Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Pearson Prentice Hall. p. 248. ISBN 0131547283. 0131547283 ↩

  27. Catling, David (1992). Rice in deep water. International Rice Research Institute. p. 177. ISBN 978-971-22-0005-2. Retrieved 23 April 2011. 978-971-22-0005-2 ↩

  28. Blodgett, R.H.; Stanley, K.O. (1980). "Stratification, Bedforms, and Discharge Relations of the Platte Braided River System, Nebraska". SEPM Journal of Sedimentary Research. 50 (1). doi:10.1306/212F7987-2B24-11D7-8648000102C1865D. /wiki/Doi_(identifier) ↩

  29. Miall, Andrew D. (May 1977). "A review of the braided-river depositional environment". Earth-Science Reviews. 13 (1): 1–62. Bibcode:1977ESRv...13....1M. doi:10.1016/0012-8252(77)90055-1. /wiki/Bibcode_(identifier) ↩

  30. Miall, Andrew D. (May 1977). "A review of the braided-river depositional environment". Earth-Science Reviews. 13 (1): 1–62. Bibcode:1977ESRv...13....1M. doi:10.1016/0012-8252(77)90055-1. /wiki/Bibcode_(identifier) ↩

  31. Miall, Andrew D. (May 1977). "A review of the braided-river depositional environment". Earth-Science Reviews. 13 (1): 1–62. Bibcode:1977ESRv...13....1M. doi:10.1016/0012-8252(77)90055-1. /wiki/Bibcode_(identifier) ↩

  32. Miall, Andrew D. (May 1977). "A review of the braided-river depositional environment". Earth-Science Reviews. 13 (1): 1–62. Bibcode:1977ESRv...13....1M. doi:10.1016/0012-8252(77)90055-1. /wiki/Bibcode_(identifier) ↩

  33. Chien, N. (1961). "The braided stream of the lower Yellow River". Scientia Sinica. 10: 734–754. ↩

  34. Fraley, Thear Kirk (13–16 March 2010). Depositional Environment of Lower Pennsylvanian Sewanee Conglomerate, Lookout Mountain, Georgia. Geological Society of America Northeastern Section (45th Annual) and Southeastern Section (59th Annual) Joint Meeting. ↩

  35. Churnet, Habte Giorgis; Bergenback, Richard E. (1986). Depositional Systems of Pennsylvanian Rocks in the Cumberland Plateau of Southern Tennessee. Georgia Geological Society. ↩

  36. Ferm, J. C.; Miliei, R. C.; Eason, J.E. (1972). "Carboniferous depositional environments in the Cumberland Plateau of Southern Tennessee and Northern Alabama". Tennessee Div. Geology Rept. Inv. (33). ↩

  37. Bertoldi, W.; Zanoni, L.; Tubino, M. (January 2010). "Assessment of morphological changes induced by flow and flood pulses in a gravel bed braided river: The Tagliamento River (Italy)". Geomorphology. 114 (3): 348–360. Bibcode:2010Geomo.114..348B. doi:10.1016/j.geomorph.2009.07.017. /wiki/Bibcode_(identifier) ↩

  38. Surian, Nicola (8 November 1999). "Channel changes due to river regulation: the case of the Piave River, Italy". Earth Surface Processes and Landforms. 24 (12): 1135–1151. Bibcode:1999ESPL...24.1135S. doi:10.1002/(SICI)1096-9837(199911)24:12<1135::AID-ESP40>3.0.CO;2-F. /wiki/Bibcode_(identifier) ↩

  39. Reinfelds, Ivars; Nanson, Gerald (December 1993). "Formation of braided river floodplains, Waimakariri River, New Zealand". Sedimentology. 40 (6): 1113–1127. Bibcode:1993Sedim..40.1113R. doi:10.1111/j.1365-3091.1993.tb01382.x. /wiki/Bibcode_(identifier) ↩