Oxbow Lakes in Sabah

By Anna Vivienne

An oxbow lake is a type of lake which is formed when water meander from a stream or a river is to form a lake. They are called oxbow lakes due to the distinctive curved shape that results from this process.

The bulges in the border of the river made the river change its course, but when the river moved, the border didn’t.

When a river reaches a plain in its course to the sea or a lake, it meanders widely. Deposition occurs on the curved bank when the water slows down.

In contrast, both lateral erosion and undercutting occur on the concave bank where the stream’s velocity is the highest.

Continuous erosion of a concave bank and deposition on the convex bank of a meandering river cause the formation of a very pronounced meander with two concave banks getting closer.

The narrow neck of land between the two neighbouring concave banks is finally cut through by either lateral erosion of the two concave banks of the strong currents during a flood.

When this happens, a new straighter river channel is created and an abandoned meander loop, called a cutoff, is formed. When deposition finally seals off the cutoff from the river channel, an oxbow lake is formed.

To see how an oxbow lake looks like, visit the Kinabatangan River. There are 20 oxbow lakes there.

Some of the lakes, known locally as Danau is overgrown with water hyacinth.

If you are fond of bird watching these lakes are good places to be. You will be able to see darters, egrets and Kingfishers diving for fish in some of the lakes.

The Pesta Beliungan or River festival in Kinabatangan is usually held in one of the lakes, near Kg Bilit.

Courtesy of: New Sabah Times 'In' Sites - Sabah Travel and Leisure Guide