Bayou
From The Art and Popular Culture Encyclopedia
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A bayou (Template:IPAc-en or Template:IPAc-en) is a United States English term for a body of water typically found in flat, low-lying area, and can refer either to an extremely slow-moving stream or river (often with a poorly defined shoreline), or to a marshy lake or wetland. The name "bayou" can also refer to creeks whose water level changes due to tides and which hold brackish water which is highly conducive to fish life and plankton. Bayous are commonly found in the Gulf Coast region of the southern United States, notably the Mississippi River region, with the state of Louisiana being famous for them. A bayou is frequently an anabranch or minor braid of a braided channel that is moving much more slowly than the mainstem, often becoming boggy and stagnant. Though vegetation varies by region, many bayous are home to crawfish, certain species of shrimp, other shellfish, catfish, frogs, toads, American alligators, American crocodiles, and a myriad of other species.
Notable examples
- Bayou Bartholomew
- Bayou Lafourche
- Bayou Teche
- Cypress Bayou
- Bayou St. John
- Big Bayou Canot
- Buffalo Bayou
- Bayou La Batre
See also
- Billabong
- Oxbow lake
- Hurricane on the Bayou
- New Orleans
- Louisiana
- Florida
- Bayou City (a nickname for Houston, which is crossed by as many as eighteen natural streams bearing the designation)