what are tributaries
A tributary is a smaller river or stream that flows into a larger river or a lake, rather than directly into a sea or ocean.
Quick Scoop: What Are Tributaries?
Think of a river system like a tree.
The big main river is the trunk, and the smaller rivers and streams flowing
into it are the tributaries.
- A tributary brings water (and often sediment and nutrients) into a larger river or lake.
- The place where a tributary meets the larger river is called the confluence.
- Tributaries do not flow directly into the sea or ocean; they join another river first.
Key points in simple terms
- Basic definition
- A tributary is a freshwater stream or river that joins a main river or lake.
- Part of a bigger system
- Tributaries plus the main river together drain a whole drainage basin or watershed (the land area where rain and meltwater flow into that river system).
- Opposite term: distributary
- A distributary is the opposite: it branches away from the main river, usually in a delta, and carries water out toward the sea.
A quick example
- The Missouri River is a major tributary of the Mississippi River in the United States: the Missouri flows into the larger Mississippi at their confluence, adding its water to the bigger river.
TL;DR: Tributaries are the smaller rivers and streams that flow into a bigger river or lake at a confluence, helping feed and build the whole river system.
Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.
