Discover Rectangular Drainage Pattern
Rectangular Drainage Pattern Technical Terms
Rectangular Drainage Pattern: A drainage pattern in which the tributaries join the main streams at right-angles, and exhibit sections of approximately the same length which form rectangular shapes; it is indicative of streams following prominent bedrock fault, joint, or foliation systems that break the rocks into rectangular blocks. It is more irregular than the trellis drainage pattern, as the side streams are not perfectly parallel and not necessarily as conspicuously elongated, and secondary tributaries need not be present. The stronger or more harsh the pattern, the thinner the soil cover. These patterns commonly form in slate, schist, and gneiss, in resistive sandstone in arid climates, or in sandstone in humid climates if little soil has developed. SW, GG, WA