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Understanding Drainage Systems and Patterns

The document outlines key terminologies related to drainage systems, including definitions of river basins and watersheds, which describe areas of land that drain into water bodies. It differentiates between distributaries and tributaries, and explains various drainage patterns such as consequent, subsequent, obsequent, resequent, dendritic, radial, trellis, and centripetal. Each pattern is characterized by specific flow directions and relationships among streams and rivers.

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shaiwalika sen
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4 views7 pages

Understanding Drainage Systems and Patterns

The document outlines key terminologies related to drainage systems, including definitions of river basins and watersheds, which describe areas of land that drain into water bodies. It differentiates between distributaries and tributaries, and explains various drainage patterns such as consequent, subsequent, obsequent, resequent, dendritic, radial, trellis, and centripetal. Each pattern is characterized by specific flow directions and relationships among streams and rivers.

Uploaded by

shaiwalika sen
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© All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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DRAINAGE SYSTEM

BASIC TERMINOLOGIES:
The flow of water through well-defined channels is known as drainage and
the network of such channels is known as drainage system.

The drainage pattern of an area is the result of the geological time period,
nature, and structure of rocks, topography, slope, etc.
RIVER BASIN
A river basin is the portion of land drained by a river and its tributaries.
WATERSHED:
A watershed is simply the area of land that catches rain and snow and
drains or seeps into a marsh, stream, river, lake or groundwater.

Both river basins and watersheds are areas of land that drain to a
particular water body, such as a lake, stream, river or estuary.
In a river basin, all the water drains to a large river. The term watershed is
used to describe a smaller area of land that drains to a smaller stream, lake
or wetland. There are many smaller watersheds within a river basin.
DISTRIBUTARY vs TRIBUTARY
Distributary is a strean /river which flows away from a large [Link]
decreases the volume of water of the main river.
DRAINAGE PATTERNS:
Consequent Streams: Those streams whose courses are the direct
consequence of the initial topography are called consequent streams.
Subsequent Streams: These are developed after the master consequent.
Obsequent streams: These flow in opposite direction to the master
consequent.
Resequent Streams: A resequent stream flows in the same direction as that
of the initial consequent stream, but which develops in response to a new
base level formed due to inversion of relief.
Dendritic: The drainage pattern resembling the branches of a tree is known
as “dendritic” the examples of which are the rivers of northern plain.
Examples: Indus, Godavari, Mahanadi, Cauvery, Krishna.

Radial: When the rivers originate from a hill and flow in all directions, the
drainage pattern is known as ‘radial’. The rivers originating from the
Amarkantak range present a good example of it.
The Narmada, Son and Mahanadi originate from Amarkantak Hills and
flow in different directions.
Trellis:When the primary tributaries of rivers flow parallel to each other
and secondary tributaries join them at right angles, the pattern is known as
‘trellis’.

Centripetal: When the rivers discharge their waters from all directions in a
lake or depression, the pattern is know as ‘centripetal’. Examples: streams
of Ladakh, Tibet, and the Baghmati and its tributaries in Nepal.

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