Basic Characteristics of a

Stream
The biotic community in the streams and rivers is quite different
from that in the ponds and lakes.

The differences in the community are largely due to differences

in the physical and chemical conditions of their environments.

Important basic characteristics of a stream are as

follows:

(a) Current:
The presence of definite and continuous current is the main
characteristic of a stream. The current velocity, which may vary
from 0.5 to 2 meter per second or more, depends on the stream
gradient. The greater the discharge (volume/time), the greater
the current velocity (distance/time) and also the amount of
suspended material that is transported.

The rate of flow, in turn, influences a number of physical and

chemical factors such as the temperature and dissolved oxygen
concentration, which act directly on the biota. The current is a
major limiting factor in streams. It might be assumed that
plankton would be absent from fast- flowing streams, since such
organisms are largely at the mercy of the current.

Plankton in small streams, if present, originates in lakes, ponds,

or backwaters connected with streams and is soon destroyed as it
passes through rapids of streams. Only in slow moving parts of
streams and in large rivers, plankton is able to multiply and
become an integral part of the community.

(b) Land-Water Interchange:

Streams are usually relatively shallow and, therefore, have a
large surface compared to their depth. Land-water interchange is
relatively more extensive in streams, resulting in a more open
ecosystem. This means that the streams are more intimately
connected with the surrounding land than are most lakes and
ponds. For this reason a significant portion of the stream’s
nutrients falls into them from their banks in the form of
terrestrial leaves, grasses and other debris.

In fact many of the primary consumers living in a stream feed on

detritus and allochthonous material (i.e., outside the system)
rather than on green aquatic vegetation (autochthonous
production). The producers of a stream can supply only a
fraction of the energy required by its animal consumers.

(c) Oxygen:
The third important characteristic of a stream, which is also a
difference between a stream and a lake, is the high amount of
dissolved oxygen. The reasons for this are many: flowing water,
the relative shallowness of the ecosystem, and the large surface
area exposed to the atmosphere. For these reasons the waters of
a shallow, fast-moving stream will have higher oxygen levels than
deep, sluggish rivers. In a stream the photosynthetic production
of oxygen is not as important as it may be in a lake or pond.

Because of turbulence, the stream water is usually well aerated

and problem of oxygen depletion, as seen in the hypolimnion of a
deep lake, is almost absent. But stream animals are very sensitive
to decreases in the oxygen content of the water. If a stream
becomes polluted with excessive load of oxygen-demanding
organic matter, such as the domestic sewage or the industrial
waste, the resulting oxygen-depletion may cause serious
problems such as a massive fish kill.
Characteristics of Watersheds
A watershed is a basic unit of hydrological behavior. On the land
surface, it is a geographical unit in which the hydrological cycle
and its components can be analyzed. Usually a watershed is
defined as the area that appears, on the basis of topography, to
contribute all the water that passes through a given point of a
stream. A watershed embraces all its natural and artificial (man-
made) features, including its surface and subsurface features,
climate and weather patterns, geologic and topographic settings,
soils and vegetation characteristics, and land use (shown in
figure 5.1). A watershed carries water “shed” from the land after
rain falls and snow melts. Drop by drop, water is channeled into
soils, groundwater, creeks, and streams, making its way to larger
rivers and eventually the sea.

Watershed Characteristics
 Each and every watershed has distinct characteristics of its
own.
 NO TWO WATERSHEDS ARE IDENTICAL.
- CLIMATIC CHARACTERISTICS
Climatic conditions depend on Temperature, Wind
Velocity, and Humidity, Transpiration, Evaporation and
Evapotranspiration depends on Climatic Condition.
The more the intensity of rainfall I the watershed, the
more is the peak flow disposal from the area.
If the duration is less, time taken to dispose with lower
peak flow is also less

- PHYSIOLOGICAL CHARACTERISTICS:
Shape:
Watersheds differ in their shape based on
morphometric parameters like geology and structure.
The shape of watersheds has a dominant effect on the
characteristics of the hydrograph of the watershed such
as peak flow, overland flow, and base of hydrograph.

Size:
The size of the watershed is governed by the size of
stream or river and the development and management
works taken.

Slope:
Controls the rainfall distribution and movement, land
utilization and watershed behavior.

Drainage:
It determines the flow characteristics and erosional
behavior.
If drainage density is more, peak run off is more.
Description of Characteristics 
CLIMATE
– Precipitation
– Evaporation
– Wind
– Relative humidity etc.
PHYSIOGRAPHY
– Size and shape of watershed
– Elevation
– Slope and aspect
GEOLOGY
– Drainage features (pattern, density, etc.)
– Parent rock types (igneous, sedimentary, metamor phic )
SOILS
– Soil depth
– Soil type
– Soil infiltration capacity
– Soil erosiveness etc.
LAND USE AND COVER CONDITIONS
– Land use types (forest, grassland, agriculture, urban, etc.)
– Ownership pattern (government private industrial) , g,
Ownership pattern (government, private, industrial)
– Forest land conditions Major forest types
– Rangeland condition and types . Agricultural practices
– Road networks and condition
– Recreational use (resort, wildlife, fish resource, etc. )
WATERSHED HYDROLOGY
– Erosion conditions along streams – Floods – Stream flow
(quantity and quality)
SOCIO-ECONOMIC FEATURES/WATERSHED USE
– Water use and needs (sources of water, domestic use, irri g
pg ) ation, industrial, power generation, etc. ) – Water use
problems (erosion, flooding, siltation, water supply, water
quality, etc.) – Income generation activities associated with
watershed management.
Important Watershed characteristics
Drainage Area (A):
- most important for hydrologic design; reflects volume of
water - generated from rainfall.
– the volume of water available for runoff may be assumed
as product of rainfall depth & drainage area.
– drainage area input to all models.
Watershed length (L):
increases as the drainage increases; L is important in
hydrologic computations;
L- defined as distance measured along the main channel
from the watershed outlet to the basin di vide; L is measured
along t h e principal flow path
A&L
- both measures of watershed size; they may reflect different
aspects of size.
A-indicate potential for rainfall to provide a volume of water;
L- used in computing time parameter -measure of travel time
of water through a watershed.
Watershed Slope (S): - Flood magnitudes reflect the
momentum of the runoff. Slope is an important factor in the
momentum.
– Watershed slope reflects the rate of change of elevation
with respect to distance along the principal flow path.
– S = E/L; where E/L; where E is difference in elevation
(between the E is difference in elevation (between the end
points of the principal flow path);
L- hydrologic length of the flow path.
Watershed shape Watersheds have an infinite variety of
shapes, and the shape supposedly reflects the way that runoff
will “bunch up” at the outlet.
Eg. A circular shaped watershed would result in runoff from
various parts of watershed reaching outlet at the same time