Intermittent, temporary or seasonal rivers or streams cease to flow every year or at least twice every five years. [1] Such rivers drain large arid and semi-arid areas, covering approximately a third of the Earth's surface. [2] The extent of temporary rivers is increasing, as many formerly perennial rivers are becoming temporary because of increasing water demand, particularly for irrigation. [3] Despite inconsistent water flow, intermittent rivers are considered land-forming agents in arid regions, as they are agents of significant deposition and erosion during flood events. [4] The combination of dry crusted soils and the highly erosive energy of the rain cause sediment resuspension and transport to the coastal areas. [5] They are among the aquatic habitats most altered by human activities. [6] During the summer even under no flow conditions the point sources are still active such as the wastewater effluents, [7] resulting in nutrients and organic pollutants accumulating in the sediment. Sediment operates as a pollution inventory and pollutants are moved to the next basin with the first flush. [8] Their vulnerability is intensified by the conflict between water use demand and aquatic ecosystem conservation. [9] Advanced modelling tools have been developed to better describe intermittent flow dynamic changes such as the tempQsim model. [5]
According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency definition, an intermittent river, or intermittent stream, is any river or stream that only flows during certain times of the year, and may not have any flowing surface water during the dry season. [10]
Intermittent rivers do not rely on, but may be supplemented, by stormwaters or other runoff from upstream sources. [10] Their channels are well-defined, [11] as compared to ephemeral streams, which may or may not have a defined channel, and rely mainly on storm runoff, as their aquatic bed is above the water table. [12] An ephemeral stream does not have the biological, hydrological, and physical characteristics of a continuous or intermittent stream. [12]
Opinions on the Clean Water Act (CWA) from the Supreme Court have classified intermittent streams as non-jurisdictional and thus outside of legal protection. Prior to 2001, virtually all bodies of water in the United States were considered jurisdictional because of their potential to function as a habitat for migratory birds. Following this 2001 Supreme Court ruling on US waters, Solid Waste Agency of Northern Cook County vs. US Army Corps of Engineers , the court went on to see two cases in 2006 further involving this matter. Rapanos vs. United States and Carabell vs. United States, after being combined into one decision, added new analytical thresholds to be met for protection but ultimately left the determination of what were to be protected U.S. waters up to the EPA, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and further court cases. [13] Recent litigation was brought by eighteen states' attorneys general because of a change to the interpretation of what is to be considered by the EPA and Army Corps of Engineers as "waters of the United States" during May 2020. [14]
Intermittent streams contain water during periods when groundwater levels are above or at the level of stream's channel, allowing for surface flow. [15] The mechanisms which control surface flow of intermittent streams are climatically and geographically specific. [16] For example, intermittent streams fed by snowmelt and glacial meltwater cease to flow when they either freeze or there is not enough inputs to sustain surface water. [16] Streams in more arid regions stop flowing due to the depletion of water storage in the surrounding aquifer and channel banks. [16] The diversion of water and impoundment for human use, such as for flood control and irrigation storage, have caused intermittency in many rivers that used to be perennial. This was the case for several large rivers such as the Nile, Indus, Yellow, Amu and Syr Darya, Rio Grande, and Colorado, which became intermittent during the past 50 years due to human interference. [17] In arid and semiarid regions of North America, most formerly perennial rivers are now intermittent. This is a direct consequence of the extensive networks of dams and aqueducts that were built for human withdrawal of water that used to flow into wetlands, deltas, and inland sinks. [18] This phenomenon can be observed in the Colorado River, whose flow has decreased significantly since 1905. In recent years, several U.S. states and Mexico have used significant amounts of water for agricultural and urban uses, which caused flows reaching the Colorado River delta to drop to near zero. [18] Effects of climate change such as higher air temperatures are predicted to accelerate drying and cause more intermittency in rivers. [19]
Intermittent rivers are found on every continent, and may even be more common than perennial rivers. [20] More than 30% of the total length and discharge of the global river network is estimated to be intermittent rivers. [4] However, due to some low-order streams being difficult to categorize or track, this total could be over 50% when taking those into account. [20] In the face of global climate change, this total is further increasing, as many of the world's rivers that were once perennial are now intermittent in regions suffering from severe climatic drying or water appropriation. [21]
Intermittent streams can be found in many different climate regions. For example, arroyos are intermittent streams that erode deep vertical channels through fine sediment in arid and semiarid regions in the American Southwest during precipitation events. [22] Many incised arroyos that are destructive to stream beds and adjacent man-made structures were formed as a result of drainage channelization and overgrazing during the late nineteenth century along with the influx of American settlers in the Southwestern United States. [23]
Glacial streams are considered intermittent streams as the flow intermittence fluctuates with solar energy input. [24] [25] Most glacial streams are alpine headwater streams that receive water from the glacial meltwater. [26] The streams become dry or freeze starting from autumn and last until early spring; the flow of the glacial streams is highest during summer. [27] [28] [26] The intermittency of the glacial streams also fluctuates at different times of the day. [26]
The inhabitants of intermittent rivers can change with the water level. As a result of contrasting conditions throughout the year, invertebrate assemblages of the same intermittent stream can be notably distinct from one another. [31] How biodiversity of these habitats changes with conditions has been debated in literature. Current findings suggest that while lotic biodiversity generally decreases with increasing flow intermittence, increased lentic and terrestrial biodiversity during those periods can compensate. [21] Thus, when lotic (flowing water), lentic (lake), and terrestrial communities are considered together, intermittent rivers can account for a high proportion of regional biodiversity. [20] The riparian zone of intermittent rivers can provide habitat and resources for a variety of organisms, and may also be an important source of nutrients for habitats downstream. [11]
The dry period of intermittent streams is ended by what is called "rewetting" or a wetting front. Rewetting is defined as the resumption of waterflow through the stream. [32] This happens when the gain of the water is higher than the loss of it into the pores of the substrate/soil, also known as infiltration. [33] Rewetting causes changes both in the dissolved nutrients in the stream, [34] and in species compositions. [34]
During dry periods of intermittent rivers, terrestrial animals can gain access to resources and areas that were otherwise inaccessible, either due to natural or man-made obstructions. [35] Additionally, when drying, these riverbeds often leave behind organisms, such as fish, which were unable to relocate in response to lowering water levels. [36] These organisms are often used as a food source for a variety of terrestrial animals, such as birds, mammals, and reptiles. [37]
Different types of fishes inhabit intermittent rivers. The Brassy minnow (Hybognathus hankinsoni) is native to the intermittent Niobrara River, Wyoming. [38] Redband trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss gairdneri) is native to intermittent desert streams of southwestern Idaho. [39] The West Fork Smith River provides vital habitat to different species, including coho salmon, returning to spawn in Oregon. [40] Cobitis shikokuensis (Hina-ishi-dojo) in intermittent rivers move into the hyporheic zone when water flows are low. When the water returns, C. shikokuensis emerge out of the hyporheic zone to recolonize the flowing river system. [41] During stream drying, Campostoma spadiceum (Highland stoneroller) move into pool habitats when riffle areas become too shallow for survival. [42]
The food web of intermittent streams differs from perennial streams in that species number and abundance change drastically among the flowing, contraction/fragmentation, and dry phases. Intermittent streams tend to have a food web based heavily on detritus and follow the bottom-up trophic model. [43] Both the ratios of predator to prey and the number of trophic levels depend on the size of the intermittent stream. [44]
Intermittent rivers face many threats. Diversion of river water for large-scale consumption, such as industrial use or for farming, can alter the ecology of intermittent rivers. [45] Disturbances caused by humans can result in short-term (pulse) and long-term (press) effects on intermittent stream habitats. [46]
A floodplain or flood plain or bottomlands is an area of land adjacent to a river. Floodplains stretch from the banks of a river channel to the base of the enclosing valley, and experience flooding during periods of high discharge. The soils usually consist of clays, silts, sands, and gravels deposited during floods.
An estuary is a partially enclosed coastal body of brackish water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea. Estuaries form a transition zone between river environments and maritime environments and are an example of an ecotone. Estuaries are subject both to marine influences such as tides, waves, and the influx of saline water, and to fluvial influences such as flows of freshwater and sediment. The mixing of seawater and freshwater provides high levels of nutrients both in the water column and in sediment, making estuaries among the most productive natural habitats in the world.
Herbaceous plants are vascular plants that have no persistent woody stems above ground. This broad category of plants includes many perennials, and nearly all annuals and biennials.
Freshwater ecosystems are a subset of Earth's aquatic ecosystems. They include lakes, ponds, rivers, streams, springs, bogs, and wetlands. They can be contrasted with marine ecosystems, which have a larger salt content. Freshwater habitats can be classified by different factors, including temperature, light penetration, nutrients, and vegetation. There are three basic types of freshwater ecosystems: Lentic, lotic and wetlands. Freshwater ecosystems contain 41% of the world's known fish species.
A winterbourne is a stream or river that is dry through the summer months, a special case of an intermittent stream. Winterbourne is a British term derived from the Old English winterburna. A winterbourne is sometimes simply called a bourne, from the Anglo-Saxon word for a stream flowing from a spring, although this term can also be used for all-year water courses. Winterbournes generally form in areas where there is chalk downland bordering clay valleys or vales. When it rains, the porous chalk holds water in its aquifer, releasing the water at a steady rate. During dry seasons the water table may fall below the level of the stream's bed, causing it to dry out.
In hydrology, there are two similar but distinct definitions in use for the word drawdown:
Ecohydrology is an interdisciplinary scientific field studying the interactions between water and ecological systems. It is considered a sub discipline of hydrology, with an ecological focus. These interactions may take place within water bodies, such as rivers and lakes, or on land, in forests, deserts, and other terrestrial ecosystems. Areas of research in ecohydrology include transpiration and plant water use, adaption of organisms to their water environment, influence of vegetation and benthic plants on stream flow and function, and feedbacks between ecological processes, the soil carbon sponge and the hydrological cycle.
The hyporheic zone is the region of sediment and porous space beneath and alongside a stream bed, where there is mixing of shallow groundwater and surface water. The flow dynamics and behavior in this zone is recognized to be important for surface water/groundwater interactions, as well as fish spawning, among other processes. As an innovative urban water management practice, the hyporheic zone can be designed by engineers and actively managed for improvements in both water quality and riparian habitat.
A riparian zone or riparian area is the interface between land and a river or stream. In some regions, the terms riparian woodland, riparian forest, riparian buffer zone, riparian corridor, and riparian strip are used to characterize a riparian zone. The word riparian is derived from Latin ripa, meaning "river bank".
River ecosystems are flowing waters that drain the landscape, and include the biotic (living) interactions amongst plants, animals and micro-organisms, as well as abiotic (nonliving) physical and chemical interactions of its many parts. River ecosystems are part of larger watershed networks or catchments, where smaller headwater streams drain into mid-size streams, which progressively drain into larger river networks. The major zones in river ecosystems are determined by the river bed's gradient or by the velocity of the current. Faster moving turbulent water typically contains greater concentrations of dissolved oxygen, which supports greater biodiversity than the slow-moving water of pools. These distinctions form the basis for the division of rivers into upland and lowland rivers.
A stream is a continuous body of surface water flowing within the bed and banks of a channel. Depending on its location or certain characteristics, a stream may be referred to by a variety of local or regional names. Long, large streams are usually called rivers, while smaller, less voluminous and more intermittent streams are known as streamlets, brooks or creeks.
A river is a natural freshwater stream that flows on land or inside caves towards another body of water at a lower elevation, such as an ocean, lake, or another river. A river may run dry before reaching the end of its course if it runs out of water, or only flow during certain seasons. Rivers are regulated by the water cycle, the processes by which water moves around the Earth. Water first enters rivers through precipitation, whether from rainfall, the runoff of water down a slope, the melting of glaciers or snow, or seepage from aquifers beneath the surface of the Earth.
A lake is an often naturally occurring, relatively large and fixed body of water on or near the Earth's surface. It is localized in a basin or interconnected basins surrounded by dry land. Lakes lie completely on land and are separate from the ocean, although they may be connected with the ocean by rivers. Most lakes are freshwater and account for almost all the world's surface freshwater, but some are salt lakes with salinities even higher than that of seawater. Lakes vary significantly in surface area and volume of water.
Freshwater biology is the scientific biological study of freshwater ecosystems and is a branch of limnology. This field seeks to understand the relationships between living organisms in their physical environment. These physical environments may include rivers, lakes, streams, ponds, reservoirs, or wetlands. Knowledge from this discipline is also widely used in industrial processes to make use of biological processes involved with sewage treatment and water purification. Water presence and flow is an essential aspect to species distribution and influences when and where species interact in freshwater environments.
A fen-meadow is a type of peatland, common in North America and Europe, that receives water from precipitation and groundwater.
Riparian-zone restoration is the ecological restoration of riparian-zonehabitats of streams, rivers, springs, lakes, floodplains, and other hydrologic ecologies. A riparian zone or riparian area is the interface between land and a river or stream. Riparian is also the proper nomenclature for one of the fifteen terrestrial biomes of the earth; the habitats of plant and animal communities along the margins and river banks are called riparian vegetation, characterized by aquatic plants and animals that favor them. Riparian zones are significant in ecology, environmental management, and civil engineering because of their role in soil conservation, their habitat biodiversity, and the influence they have on fauna and aquatic ecosystems, including grassland, woodland, wetland or sub-surface features such as water tables. In some regions the terms riparian woodland, riparian forest, riparian buffer zone, or riparian strip are used to characterize a riparian zone.
The flood pulse concept explains how the periodic inundation and drought control the lateral exchange of water, nutrients and organisms between the main river channel and the connected floodplain. The annual flood pulse is the most important aspect and the most biologically productive feature of a river's ecosystem. describing the movement, distribution and quality of water in river ecosystems and the dynamic interaction in the transition zone between water and land. It contrasts with previous ecological theories which considered floods to be catastrophic events.
A drought refuge is a site that provides permanent fresh water or moist conditions for plants and animals, acting as a refuge habitat when surrounding areas are affected by drought and allowing ecosystems and core species populations to survive until the drought breaks. Drought refuges are important for conserving ecosystems in places where the effects of climatic variability are exacerbated by human activities.
A glacier stream is a channelized area that is formed by a glacier in which liquid water accumulates and flows. Glacial streams are also commonly referred to as "glacier stream" or/and "glacial meltwater stream". The movement of the water is influenced and directed by gravity and the melting of ice. The melting of ice forms different types of glacial streams such as supraglacial, englacial, subglacial and proglacial streams. Water enters supraglacial streams that sit at the top of the glacier via filtering through snow in the accumulation zone and forming slush pools at the FIRN zone. The water accumulates on top of the glacier in supraglacial lakes and into supraglacial stream channels. The meltwater then flows through various different streams either entering inside the glacier into englacial channels or under the glacier into subglacial channels. Finally, the water leaves the glacier through proglacial streams or lakes. Proglacial streams do not only act as the terminus point but can also receive meltwater. Glacial streams can play a significant role in energy exchange and in the transport of meltwater and sediment.
Vulnerable waters refer to geographically isolated wetlands (GIWs) and to ephemeral and intermittent streams. Ephemeral and intermittent streams are seasonally flowing and are located in headwater position. They are the outer and smallest stems of hydrological networks. Isolated wetlands are located outside floodplain and show poor surface connection to tributaries or floodplains. Geographically isolated wetlands encompass saturated depressions that are the result of fluvial, aeolian, glacial and/or coastal geomorphological processes. They may be natural landforms or the result of human interventions. Vulnerable waters represent the major proportion of river networks.