Kygeocast

Today we'll return to the Cove Springs Nature Preserve for a visit to the wetland for a quick lesson in geomorphology, which is the study of the shape of landforms. This city park is located north of downtown Frankfort on Highway 127 just north of the intersection with Wilkinson Boulevard. River systems can be classified by their basic shapes. Old streams, like the lower part of the Mississippi River have very low gradients, that is, the elevation changes very little over long distances. If water can go downhill only so fast and you can't pile it up, what happens when there is too much water? It spreads out. A stream or river will flood when there is more water coming in to its valley than can flow out. One way old streams handle extra water is with broad flat valleys, flood plains. Another way is to change the length of the river itself. The curves and loops in rivers, called meanders, are a balance between the amount of water a river has to carry and its gradient. This wetland is a cutoff meander. Many thou