Big Muddy River

The Big Muddy River is a 156-mile-long (251 km) river in southern Illinois. It joins the Mississippi River south of Murphysboro. The Big Muddy has been dammed near Benton, forming Rend Lake.

The Big Muddy has a mud bottom for most of its length.

Hydrography

The Big Muddy drains a 2,344-square-mile (6,070 km²) watershed. In 1995, water quality was assessed as "fair" to "good". Pollution sources include agricultural practices, mining and municipalities.

The watershed of the Big Muddy was covered by the Illinoian Glacier about 300,000 to 132,000 years before present. The Big Muddy basin formed after the retreat of that glacier.

The Big Muddy was not covered by the Wisconsin Glacier, about 70,000 to 10,000 years before present. However, during the melting of that glacier, the level of the Mississippi River was much higher. Water backed up into the Big Muddy Basin, forming a lake much like the artificial Rend Lake but covering a larger area. The ancient lake silted in, forming a flat bottom. After the melting of the Wisconsinan glacier, the level of the Mississippi dropped, allowing the lake to drain. A new channel formed within the old lake bed. This channel meandered in the flat bottom of the Wisconsinan-era lake. This is why the Big Muddy tends to be so muddy.

Muddy River

Muddy River may refer to:

Streams

Other

See also

Muddy River (Nevada)

The Muddy River, formerly known as the Moapa River, is a short river located in Clark County, in southern Nevada, United States. It is in the Mojave Desert, approximately 60 miles (97 km) north of Las Vegas.

Geography

The Muddy River is approximately 32 miles (51 km) long. It begins as a series of thermal springs in the Moapa Valley before continuing on its course to Lake Mead, where it drains into the northern arm of the lake near Overton, Nevada. Before the Hoover Dam's construction, the Muddy River flowed into the Virgin River.

Near the town of Glendale the Muddy River collects the flow from the Meadow Valley Wash, forming the principal drainage system for southeastern Nevada.

Moapa National Wildlife Refuge

The Moapa Valley area is home to a wide variety of rare and endangered species, including fish, invertebrates, birds, and plants. Three endangered fish inhabit the area: the Moapa dace (Moapa coriacea), the Virgin River chub (Gila seminuda), and the White River springfish (Crenichthys baileyi moapae). These species can be found throughout the various springs, called the Muddy Springs, that feed the Muddy River.

Muddy River (Sebago Lake)

The Muddy River is a 5.3-mile-long (8.5 km)tributary of Sebago Lake in the U.S. state of Maine.

See also

References

Coordinates: 43°56′59″N 70°37′32″W / 43.94979°N 70.62561°W / 43.94979; -70.62561