Flood-Pulse Concept

This concept demonstrates how flooding processes, plants and wildlife in all parts of the stream corridor interact. Floodplains serve as essential focal points for the growth of many riparian plant communities and the wildlife they support. Some riparian plant species such as willows and cottonwoods depend on flooding for regeneration. Flooding also nourishes floodplains with sediments and nutrients and provides habitat for invertebrate communities, amphibians, reptiles, and fish spawning.

The flood-pulse concept was developed to summarize how the dynamic interaction between water and land is exploited by the aquatic and terrestrial river corridor biota. Applicable primarily on larger rivers, the concept demonstrates that the predictable advance and retraction of water on the floodplain in a natural setting enhances biological productivity and maintains diversity (Bayley 1995).

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