meander scar

geology

Also known as: meander scroll

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Last updated

June 30, 2026

Quick Summary

A meander scar is a geological feature that marks the former location of a river's meander loop. Rivers naturally form bends, or meanders, as they flow through alluvial materials. Over time, a river may cut through the neck of a meander, shortening its course and causing the old loop to be abandoned. This abandoned loop can become an oxbow lake, which eventually silts up and dries out, leaving behind a meander scar. These scars are often visible as subtle depressions in the landscape or areas with different vegetation compared to the surrounding terrain.12

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river
Floodplain deposits, origins, and features
…a distinct topography known as meander scrolls. As the river changes its position, meander-scroll topography becomes preserved as part of the floodplain surface itself. Overbank processes also create microtopography. The latter includes natural levees, which are elongate narrow ridges that form adjacent to channels when the largest particles of the…
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…a distinct topography known as meander scrolls. As the river changes its position, meander-scroll topography becomes preserved as part of the floodplain surface itself. Overbank processes also create microtopography. The latter includes natural levees, which are elongate narrow ridges that form adjacent to channels when the largest particles of the…
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meander
…to form a marsh or meander scar.
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…to form a marsh or meander scar.
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oxbow lake
…to form marshes and finally meander scars, marked by different vegetation or the absence of cultivation. The lakes commonly are filled with clay-sized sediment that is less easy to erode than surrounding material and thus may cause a more complex meandering system in its parent stream.
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…to form marshes and finally meander scars, marked by different vegetation or the absence of cultivation. The lakes commonly are filled with clay-sized sediment that is less easy to erode than surrounding material and thus may cause a more complex meandering system in its parent stream.
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