Descriptionary

detritus particles of decaying plants and animals used as a source of food by many aquatic animals.

dimictic a lake whose waters overturn twice a year, due to temperature mixing, most commonly found in temperate regions.

eutrophic of a body of water, having its oxygen depleted by lush vegetation.

eutrophication the gradual filling-in of a lake by the growth of vegetation and rising sediment so that it gradually becomes a pond, then a marsh, then a swamp, and then finally dries up, the natural aging process of all lakes.

eyes small areas of open water in mat-covered bogs.

fen a marsh or bog.

floaters floating plants, such as water lilies and duckweed.

foxfire luminescence caused by the decaying of wood by certain fungi, seen in swampy areas at night.

hammocks tree islands found in swampy areas.

ice scour a relatively shallow lake formed by gla­ciers making a shallow depression over a level area.

kettle a natural lake formed in a depression in a glacial moraine.

lacustrine like a lake or pertaining to a lake.

lagoon the pond or body of water within a coral atoll, or any small body of water connecting with a river, lake, or sea.

limnologist one who studies lakes. limnology the study of lakes.

littoral the shore area from the waterline to the plant line.

loch Scottish word for a lake.

marsh the shallow body of water partially filled in with vegetation, evolving from a pond.

methane marsh or swamp gas formed by decaying plants.

mire swampy ground or deep mud.

monomictic a lake whose water overturns once a year, due to temperature mixing.

moraine lake a lake formed when rocks and debris dumped by a glacier dam a river.

morass soft, wet ground, as in a marsh or bog.

muskeg a mossy bog found in northern, coniferous forest regions.

oligotrophic a body of water with a high oxygen content and largely devoid of plants and animals.

oxbow lake a lake formed when a bend or meander in a river is cut off from the main flow and isolated.

paternoster lakes a series of glacier-carved basins filled with water and resembling a string of beads.

peat decayed and partially carbonized vegetable matter found in bogs and used for fuel.

plankton tiny plants and animals that float or swim near the surface of water.

playa lake a shallow, temporary lake that forms in a desert playa or basin.

Pleistocene the epoch of glacial activity beginning 2.5 million years ago, when many of Earth's lakes were formed.

pluvial lake a lake that formed during a period of increased rainfall and decreased evaporation, most notably in nonglaciated southern regions of North America during the time of the last ice age.

quaggy yielding under foot, such as boggy ground.

quagmire marshy or boggy ground.

quaking bog a bog with a floating mat of vegeta­tion, which trembles or "quakes" when disturbed.

seiche lake oscillations, or the tilting back and forth of lake water.

slough a slow, meandering stream that drains a swamp, or a place of deep mud or mire.

sphagnum a common bog moss.

succession the natural evolution of a body of water from a lake to a pond to a marsh and to a swamp, or the gradual filling-in of vegetation and sediment that causes a body of water ultimately to dry up.

swamp a wetland characterized by moss, shrubs, and trees such as cypress and gums; a marsh with trees.

swamp gas methane produced by decaying vegetation.

tannin the chemical released from peat or tree bark that colors water brown or tealike.

tarn a mountain lake formed in a cirque.

Wisconsin ice sheet the glacial ice sheet responsible for the formation of the U.S. Great Lakes.

meteorology

advection the horizontal movement of air, mois­ture, or heat.

air mass large mass of air with nearly uniform tem­perature and moisture.

air stagnation an air mass full of smoke, gases, and dust that has stalled over an area and cannot be cleansed due to a lack of breeze or wind.

astraphobia fear of thunder and lightning.

atmospheric pressure weight of a given volume of air. Also known as barometric pressure.

atmospherics lightning-based electrical distur­bances causing radio noise and static and interfering with telecommunications. See whistler.

ball lightning a mysterious and controversial elec­trical phenomenon, associated most often with thun­derstorms; unlike lightning, it takes on the form of a sphere of various sizes, which may dart, hover, and glow for several seconds at a time.

barometer an instrument that measures atmospheric pressure and can be used to help predict storms.

barometric pressure see atmospheric pressure.