The Watershed Game

An Introduction

Before starting the game, you'll need to know what a watershed is and its relationship to the water cycle. The information below will help you better understand what a watershed is and the different parts that make it up. The next page will describe the water cycle.

What is a Watershed?

A watershed is an area of land that collects water from rain or snow. The water collected in the watershed seeps into the ground or flows downstream into rivers, streams, and lakes.

Here is a picture of a watershed. The purple dashed line marks the boundary of the watershed:

Many different parts make up a watershed:

Precipitation: The water that falls to the earth as rain and snow that flows into streams and is absorbed into the ground for plants to take up in their roots.

Headwaters: The places where streams begin, usually the highest point.

Tributaries: Streams that flow into one another to make larger streams. Larger streams join to form rivers.

Floodplain: An area that can become flooded when a river or stream overflows.

Estuary: Where the river meets the ocean. Fresh water from the river and salt water from the ocean mix here.

Ridgeline: The top edge of the mountain that divides one watershed from another.

Now that you know a little about what a watershed is, you'll also need to know a little bit more about the water cycle:

Next: What is the Water Cycle?