This document discusses water and rivers from an ecological perspective. It begins by outlining the topics that will be covered, including water's role in ecosystems, characteristics of water and rivers, how life is impacted, water quality and pollution, and testing a local river. The document then discusses water itself, including its physical and chemical properties. It also covers topics like the water cycle, characteristics of rivers like headwaters and mouths, and how rivers shape the landscape through erosion, transportation, and deposition over time.

1. Unit II Ecological Biology

2. Unit II
The Importance of Water and
Rivers

3. Now that you know some
biology and ecology it’s time
to go in depth. 
• Water’s role in the ecosystem
• Characteristics
• Impact on Life
• Quality and pollution
• Become ecologists by testing water
• Learn about our own environment (The
West Fork of the North Branch of the
Chicago River)

4. Activity: What is water?
On the front desk you will see a container of water.
You and your table partner must write down at
least 7 characteristics of water. Consider everything
you have learned about water over your lifetime.
CHARACTERISTICS OF
WATER: Consider its color, its
phase or state at various
temperatures, its odor, its chemical
make up, its density, etc.

5. COMMON CHARACTERISTICS OF
WATER
It is a liquid but can also be a solid or gas
 As a liquid it ranges in temp from 0-100 degrees Celsius.
 Earth is the only planet where water exists in all three states.
It is the most abundant compound on earth.
Made of 2 hydrogen atoms and 1 oxygen atom; H 2O
Very high heat capacity- can absorb a ton of heat without becoming too
hot
Water likes to stick together and to things- cohesion
Water is the Universal Solvent (*next slide)
WHEN WATER FREEZES IT EXPANDS
Water is necessary for life to exist as we know it.

6. A solvent is a liquid, solid, or gas
capable of dissolving another
liquid, solid or gas called a solute
and forming a solution of the 2
substances..

7. Universal Solvent
Solvents dissolve substances.
Even though water dissolves many substances, its
own molecules are not chemically changed by the
dissolved materials. When it evaporates it loses its
impurities. Why is this important?
When water evaporates from solutions it leaves
impurities behind; purifying it and thus it can be used
over and over.

9. Water Cycle
Now that you see how important
water is, lets look at how much of
this stuff we have.
GLOBE TOSS ACTIVITY
HOW CAN WE AS A CLASS ESTIMATE HOW MUCH
WATER COVERS THE EARTH WITH JUST OUR
HANDS AND A BLOW UP GLOBE?

11. PREDICTIONS
Of the amount of global water, how much is
realistically usable (usable meaning fresh water not
salt water?)
Your group will be given one liter (1000 mL of
water this represents all of the water on earth, given
the types of water found on earth predict the
various amounts that water that exist in each type.
Make predictions in your team
After you have divided it up, write down
predictions of percentages and then we will reveal
the true answers

12. TYPE OF WATER True amount out of % on earth
your 1L Container
Oceans 973mL 97.2%
Ice Caps/ Glaciers 21mL 2.15%
Groundwater 6.1 mL .0622%
Freshwater Lakes .09mL or 2 drops .018%
Salt Lakes .08mL or 2 drops .0089%
Soil Moisture .05mL or 1 drop .005%
Atmospheric .01mL or 1/5 .001%
drop
Rivers .004mL .0001%

13. Notice, over 97 percent is saline (salt water-oceans).Of the
total freshwater(3%), over 68 percent is locked up in ice and
glaciers. Another 30 percent of freshwater is in the ground.
Surface-water sources, such as rivers, only constitute about
300 cubic miles (about 1/10,000th of one percent of total
water).

14. Now that you see how much water is
really usable, you can understand why
it is necessary to protect and
responsibly use this vital substance.
• Conservation can only occur through
understanding the WATER CYCLE.
• Remember from ecology that water was one of the
important cycles in nature. Water used by plants,
animals, and people is never destroyed: it is used
and reused by living and non- living forms. It is
the earth’s vast plumbing system. Powered by the
sun, the water is continually purified for reuse.

15. THE WATER CYCLE TEST
You probably know the answers to this test! Let’s see!
1. What is it called when water rises fromplants?of water into the atmosphere?
2. What if water rises from living a body

16. PRECIPITATION
THE WATER CYCLE TEST
3. And the water that rises then cools during condensation
and sits in clouds until what happens?
PRECIPITATION

17. PRECIPITATION
THE WATER CYCLE TEST
AND THERE YOU
HAVE IT! A
WATER CYCLE!

18. PRECIPITATION
One more Or it can
thing…when the dribble and run
water hits the off the ground
ground it can do called
1 of 2 things…
either it can seep
into the ground
called
RUN-OFF
INFILTRATION
EITHER WAY IT EVENTUALLY MAKES IT
WAY BACK INTO THE WATER CYCLE!

19. WHERE DOES THE WATER GO?
INFILTRATION RUN-OFF
Water that sinks into the This is water that runs
ground gets held in a over the lands into the
aquifer rivers lakes and
and is called ground reservoirs and is
water. known as surface
water.
The next slide dissects
an aquifer.

20. AN AQUIFER
Aquifer is like an
underground sponge!
The top layer of the
aquifer is called the
water table! How
far the water
infiltrates depends
on the soil,
vegetation, and
types of rock
present.

22. TAKE A MINUTE TO LABEL
AND RECOGNIZE THE
PARTS OF THE WATER
CYCLE IN YOUR UNIT 2
PACKET.

23. WHAT IS THE MAIN SOURCE OF
ENERGY FOR THE WATER CYCLE?

24. THE WATER CYCLE EQUATION
IF YOU HAD TO COME UP WITH AN ADDITION EQUATION
FOR THE WATER CYCLE’S WATER…WHAT MIGHT IT BE?
EVAPORATION + TRANSPIRATION = PRECIPITATION
The problem with this equation is that the distribution of
water is not even throughout the biosphere. What does
that mean?

25. RENEWEL TIME
DEFINITION:
The time required for all water in a body of water to be
replaced or renewed.
Renewel time depends on:
-rate of flow
(things with faster flow renew quicker)
-volume of the body of water
(smaller volume of water renews quicker)

26. ESTIMATE WHICH WOULD
RENEW FASTER…
A RIVER OR AN OCEAN
LAKE POLAR ICE
MICHIGAN OR CAPS
DEEP GROUND LAKE ERIE
OR
WATER
THE NILE
SOIL MOISTURE OR RIVER

27. Renewel Time
On average water is completely renewed in rivers once every
16 days. Water in the atmosphere is completely replaced once
every 8 days. Slower rates of replacement occur in large lakes,
glaciers, ocean bodies and groundwater. Replacement in these
reservoirs can take from hundreds to thousands of years. Some
of these resources (especially groundwater) are being used by
humans at rates that far exceed their renewal times. This type
of resource use is making this type of water effectively
nonrenewable.

28. Typical residence times of water found in
various reservoirs.
Reservoir Average Residence Time
Glaciers 20 to 100 years
Seasonal Snow Cover 2 to 6 months
Soil Moisture 1 to 2 months
Groundwater: Shallow 100 to 200 years
Groundwater: Deep 10,000 years
Lakes 50 to 100 years
Rivers 2 to 6 months

29. Part II What is a River?

30. So…WHAT IS A RIVER?

31. DEFINITION: A river is a collection of
surface water finding its way over land from
higher altitude to lower altitude, all due to
GRAVITY.

32. Let’s explore some common features
about surface water and rivers.

33. Some common river vocabulary
1.Flowing water from run off
finds its way downhill initially
into these B A.Lakes
2.Small creeks merge to form
these
C B.Small Creeks
3.Rivers eventually flow into
these
E C.Streams and rivers
4.Water that has made its way to
a place that is surrounded by D.Reservoir
higher land on all sides is called
these
A E.Oceans
5.If man has built a dam to
hinder a river’s flow that lake
that forms is called this
D

34. WHERE DOES THE RIVER’S
WATER COME FROM?
THINK ABOUT THE EARTH AND WHAT YOU KNOW
ABOUT LAND AND THE WATER CYCLE!

35. WHERE DOES THE RIVER’S
WATER COME FROM?
THINK ABOUT THE EARTH AND WHAT YOU KNOW
ABOUT LAND AND THE WATER CYCLE! REMEMBER
WHAT THE WATER TABLE IS?
The water table is the top of
the aquifer and is usually far
underground. SOMETIMES
though, a river bank or low
lands can actually dip into
the water table and then
water seeps into a river.

37. PARTS OF A RIVER
HEAD The place a river begins is called
the HEAD or HEAD WATERS
of the river.
As they flow to lower altitudes
toward the ocean, rivers tend to
merge to form larger rivers. The
end of the river where it enters
another river, a lake, or the
ocean is known as the MOUTH.
MOUTH
OCEAN

38. PARTS OF A RIVER
HEAD Sometimes at the mouth
of a river a DELTA is
formed. As the river
meets the Ocean or lake,
it loses velocity and
dumps its sediment in
an expanding fan-
shaped, or roughly
triangular-shaped zone
called a delta.
MOUTH
DELTA
OCEAN

39. PARTS OF A RIVER
HEAD Do you know what this
zig zag pattern is called
for a river? Hint: It is
like a “wandering river”
MEANDER
Meanders happen to a river
over time. A river bends as it
MOUTH adjusts to disturbances, such as,
DELTA increases in water volume or
obstacles that deflects its
current.
OCEAN

40. PARTS OF A RIVER
HEAD Sometimes a river
meanders so much that a
portion if it breaks off
and forms a mini lake
called an OX BOW
lake.
OX BOW
MEANDER
Let’s take closer look
MOUTH at the formation of an
oxbow lake.
DELTA
OCEAN

41. OX BOW LAKE
FORMATION

42. Key parts of
most rivers
Pools
Rapids
Oxbow
Lakes
Riffles
Runs

43. REVIEW QUIZ
1. What is the process called where water leaves plants and
rises into the atmosphere?
2. What is main source of energy/cause of the water cycle?
3. What is the difference between run off and infiltration?
4. What is the area called where a river begins?
5. Where it ends?
6. Where do most rivers eventually end up?
7. THINK! How does water get from the mouth of a river back
to the headwaters?

44. CRINKLE PAPER ACTIVITY
Please listen carefully to your teachers instructions

45. Shade in the low areas with a blue marker/pencil. These
represent the rivers, lakes, and reservoirs.
The higher land levels, or peaks on the paper, can be the
mountains, hills, a RIDGE, CONTINENTAL DIVIDE OR
MORAINE.
THIS ENTIRE DRAINAGE AREA IS CALLED A

46. Most of the continental divides that form
the watershed boundaries in the midwest
were formed by glacial moraines.

47. Moraine is
rock debris,
fallen or
plucked
from a
mountain
and
transported
by glaciers
or ice
sheets. It
forms a rise
in the land.

48. While we don’t have a lot of mountains in this
area we do have some hills, almost all of them are
formed by glacial deposits or moraines.

49. WHAT IS A WATERSHED?
A drainage basin or a land area which receives all the water flowing
into a particular river. Check out these short movies!

50. Features of a Watershed
• Streams and Rivers
• Headwaters (formed from springs, glacial
melt, lake or wetland
• Lakes
• Ponds
• Wetlands (area of land saturated by water
and inhabited by plants and animals adapted
to those living conditions) includes bogs,
swamps and marshes.

51. Stream order describes the
relative size of streams

52. The Mississippi River is a tenth
order stream!

53. Can you provide the stream order for
the diagram in your packet?
Give it a try with your table partner.

54. CONTINENTAL DIVIDE
The one that runs along the highest ridges of the Rocky Mountains
separates 2 watersheds. Precipitation falling on the western side of
the Divide will flow towards the __________ Ocean and rain
falling on the eastern slopes will flow toward the _____________
Ocean via the Gulf of Mexico.

55. All rivers impact the land they run
over and all land impacts the river’s
quality and features. Mississippi River Delta

56. Rivers do three main things to
the land they travel over.
• Erode the land by the force of water on the
land’s surface.
• Transport the land. Carry the eroded land
to another place.
• Deposit the eroded and transported land to
another location.

57. Erosion

60. Transportation

64. Examples where rivers effect
land.
•As silt is deposited in flood plains of rivers, excellent farmland is
made. The ancient ______________ who lived along the ______
Egyptians Nile
depended on the annual flooding for their livelihood.
•Also as the river ran over the land for millions of years in the
Arizona area, it created the __________________
GRAND CANYON
• As rivers move they carry and drop off, or deposit, soil, sand, and
sediments. _River Deltas

65. EFFECTS OF RIVER WATER
ON LAND
Another Matching Game!
1. Removal of material from a A. Deposition
channel or bank
B. Transportation
2. Movement of eroded
particles by dragging or in C. Erosion
solution
3. Accumulation of
transported particles to
another location on the
streambed or floodplain.

66. DEPOSITION
Opposite of erosion
Where a river lays down or drops sediments, rocks, mud, silt,
boulders, pebbles, stones or materials that it is carrying
BENEFIT: Why might deposition help us? FARMING
DOWNSIDE: Why might deposition be harmful?
FLOODING, BLOCKING OF CHANNEL

67. Deposition of sand on the inside edge of river
bend
This is where the river current is the slowest.

68. Think of a Metaphor
Take a moment to devise a metaphor with your table partner for the
terms deposition, transportation and erosion.
EXAMPLE: If a river were like Sunset grocery store, the picking
up the items off the shelves would be erosion, the pushing of my
cart would be transportation, and the placing the items down on the
cashiers belt would be deposition.

69. Physical Changes in a River Over
Time
What happens to people as they get old?
•They get slower
•They can not lift heavy objects, they get
weaker
•They do not do as much physical activity

70. Physical Changes in a River Over
Time
As opposed to a young
person who…
•Can move fast
•Can lift many objects and
carry them around
•Have much more physical
activity

71. Physical Changes in a River Over
Time
THE SAME IS TRUE FOR YOUNG AND OLD RIVERS!
Young kid YOUNG OLD Old person
RIVER RIVER
Fast/enerrgy Fast flow Slow flow Slow
Can lift things
and carry them Much Little Can NOT lift things
and carry them around
around Erosion Erosion
Can carry things
and NOT drop Little Much Can NOT carry things
for long. MUST drop
them Deposition Deposition them
Steep Shallow

72. Physical Changes in a River Over
Time
BECAUSE OF EROSION, DEPOSTION, AND
TRANSPORTATION, things like OX-BOW lakes and
FLOODPLAINS get formed.

73. HUMAN CONTACT WITH
RIVERS
THE RIVER CAN BE HELPFUL TO US OR HARMFUL TO
US JUST AS WE CAN BE HELPFUL OR HARMFUL TO IT!
With your table partner, list 1 way for each by filling in the chart

74. Human Contact with Rivers
(fill in the blanks)
How can the river
help humans?
How can the river be
harmful?
How can humans help
the river?
**How can humans be
harmful?

75. Human Contact with Rivers
(fill in the blanks)
How can the river Farming, trading,
help humans? transportation
How can the river be Flooding disasters
harmful?
How can humans help Monitor it, keep it clean, stop
the river? over- erosion
**How can humans be Pollution, over channelize it,
harmful? construction, damming,
draining wetlands

76. What types of things can cause the
pollution of water?

77. Can your list be grouped by
categories?
Example: oil and gasoline could be
considered toxic pollution.

78. Four Main Types of Pollution
• Organic
• Inorganic
• Toxic
• Thermal

79. Organic: come from the decomposition of once-
living organisms and their by products. Such as ?

80. Inorganic: comes from suspended and
dissolved solids, mainly silt, salts and
other minerals.

81. Toxic Pollutants: Heavy metals and chemical compounds
that don’t easily recycle that are lethal to organisms.
Often they are byproducts of industrial processes: bleach,
drain cleaners, paint, pesticides.

82. Thermal: Waste heat generated and put into
waterways from power generation and cooling
equipment for factories in their manufacturing
process.

83. Sources of Water Pollution

84. POLLUTION
Point Source Pollution Non-Point Source Pollution
- when a river acts as a sewer or -Pollutants that are trickier to
drainage ditch for a factory or sewage point to the origin. Fertilizer
treatment plant. From homes, farming, golf
courses.
-Because we know where the pollution is
coming from we can POINT to the source— -Because we do not know the
hence POINT SOURCE POLLUTION. exact source- NON POINT
SOURCE

85. POINT SOURCE OR NON?
Which is which?

86. POINT SOURCE OR NON?

87. Point or non point source
pollution

88. POINT SOURCE OR NON POINT
SOURCE?

89. Floodplain Construction and
Over Channelization of a River
The more we artificially channelize the river, the more
it wants to find its floodplain leading to floods.
The more construction that occurs, the more erosion,
which adds to the cloudiness and turbidity of the river and
makes the banks less stable.

90. Examples of channelizing
rivers

93. North branch of the Chicago
River

94. DRAINING WETLANDS
WETLANDS are areas which are next to and even part of river
systems.
They are often drained and built upon leading to more run off,
then erosion and and finally flooding.
When river banks erode flooding can occur!

96. DAMMING
May be the most drastic alteration
of river systems
Because it provides:
1) Flood control
2) Recreation/beauty
3) Water Storage
4) Hydroelectricity

97. DAMMING
May be the most drastic alteration
of river systems
When they are built they
1) May kill many organisms
2) Severely affect wildlife
3) Are dangerous to play by
4) Causing reservoirs to fill
up with silt/ water back up

98. Now that we have some of the water and river
basics we can begin to study our watershed. GBN
is located on the West Fork of the North branch
of the Chicago River.