Formation
Ponds can result from a wide range of natural processes. Any depression in the ground which collects and retains a sufficient amount of precipitation can be considered a pond, and such depressions can be formed by a variety of geological and ecological events. Rivers often leave behind ponds in natural flood plains after spring flooding, and these can be very important to breeding fish, particularly in large river systems like the Amazon. Retreating glaciers can leave behind landscapes filled with small depressions, each developing its own pond; an example is the Prairie Pothole Region of North America. Many areas of landscape contain small depressions which form temporary ponds after spring snow melt, or during rainy seasons; these are called vernal ponds, and may be important sites for amphibian breeding. Some ponds are created by animals. Beaver ponds are the best known example, but alligators also excavate ponds as well. In landscapes with organic soils, fires can also create depressions during periods of drought; these become open water when normal water levels return.
Read more about this topic: Pond
Famous quotes containing the word formation:
“I want you to consider this distinction as you go forward in life. Being male is not enough; being a man is a right to be earned and an honor to be cherished. I cannot tell you how to earn that right or deserve that honor. . . but I can tell you that the formation of your manhood must be a conscious act governed by the highest vision of the man you want to be.”
—Kent Nerburn (20th century)
“That for which Paul lived and died so gloriously; that for which Jesus gave himself to be crucified; the end that animated the thousand martyrs and heroes who have followed his steps, was to redeem us from a formal religion, and teach us to seek our well-being in the formation of the soul.”
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882)
“Out of my discomforts, which were small enough, grew one thing for which I have all my life been grateful—the formation of fixed habits of work.”
—Elizabeth Stuart Phelps (1844–1911)