How do different types of lakes form?

Lakes may also be created by landslides or mudslides that send soil, rock, or mud sliding down hills and mountains. The debris piles up in natural dams that can block the flow of a stream, forming a lake. Dams that beavers build out of tree branches can plug up rivers or streams and make large ponds or marshes.



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Lakes are classified based on productivity, or how much photosynthesis is occurring in the water.
  • Oligotrophic lakes have low levels of productivity, these are often clearer water.
  • Mesotrophic lakes have a middle level of productivity. ...
  • Eutrophic lakes are high in productivity, so high they can be green in color.


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It may surprise you to know there is no technical difference between lakes and ponds, according to the National Park Service(Opens in a new window). However, a general rule of a thumb is if a body of water is large and deep it's a lake and if it's short and shallow it's a pond.

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The Great Lakes are, from west to east: Superior, Michigan, Huron, Erie and Ontario. They are a dominant part of the physical and cultural heritage of North America.

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The following are some of the most important basic factors that give unique character to each lake ecosystem. Climate: Temperature, wind, precipitation, and solar radiation all critically affect the lake's hydrologic and chemical characteristics, and indirectly affect the composition of the biological community.

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A reservoir is an artificial lake where water is stored. Most reservoirs are formed by constructing dams across rivers.

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Exorheic, or open lakes drain into a river, or other body of water that ultimately drains into the ocean. Endorheic basins fall into the category of endorheic or closed lakes, wherein waters do not drain into the ocean, but are reduced by evaporation, and/or drain into the ground.

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