A curved, often crescent-shaped lake formed when a river cuts through the narrow neck of a meander loop, abandoning the old bend as the main channel takes a more direct path and leaving the former loop isolated as standing water. Oxbow lakes gradually fill with sediment and vegetation over time, eventually becoming a marsh and then dry ground.
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Source Oxbow Lake Formation (Wikipedia)
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Wikidata: Oxbow Lake
Wikidata Q34703856, class allow-list match (w-wdresolver-0926)View the Source Oxbow Lake Formation (Wikipedia)
Wikimedia FoundationShaped By: Oxbow Lake Formation, Lead paragraphQuote, Shaped By: Oxbow Lake Formation, Lead paragraph
An oxbow lake is a U-shaped lake or pool that forms when a wide meander of a river is cut off, creating a free-standing body of water.
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