1. The main difference between the water in the lakes and the water in the streams is that the water of the lakes is enclosed, thus it is more static (relatively speaking), while the water from the streams is moving along the banks. The water of the lakes is relatively static. Not to get me wrong, it moves, but it moves in an enclosed area, and it moves horizontally, not downward. The water of the streams on the other hand is moving much quicker, and it moves along the banks. This water moves downward, from the higher parts toward the lower parts.
2. The difference between a closed lake and an open lake is that the close lake doesn't have water from another body of water coming in and going out of it, while the open lake has exactly that. The close lakes don't have rivers and streams coming into them, nor there's a river or stream coming out of them, they are closed by higher physical features. The open lakes on the other hand have rivers and streams coming into them, as well as having an opening from the which the water is coming out, thus there's a stream or river coming out of it, which makes the water slowly circulate and change.
3. The lakes are not the most reliant bodies of water when it comes to being long lasting. The reason for that is that they are bodies of water that are the easiest affected by the changes in the climate, as well as the changes in the relief. The geological activities can simply make the lake go up, or lean sideways, thus it can lose its water through runoff. If the rainfall decreases, then the lake will have higher loss of water through evaporation then what it gets, resulting in drying out.
4. The main difference between the marshes and the swamps is that the marshes are wetlands that are very rich in nutrients and they support grasses and reeds, while the swamps are wetlands that can support trees and other woody plants. The marshes can be found on the fringes of the lakes and the rivers, and they re practically a transitional zone between the waters of these water bodies and the land. The swamps are found along the shores of the lakes and the large rivers.
5. The wetlands have numerous functions in the natural order, some of which are:
- flood storage
The waters of the wetlands manage to slow down and store big portion of any incoming water, thus being able to either stop a flood, or at least minimize its effects
- protecting the water quality
The wetlands, with the amount of water they have, as well as all the different types of bacteria in them, manage to filter out the waters that polluted and coming into them, thus serving as a nice natural filter.
- prevention of erosion
Because the wetlands manage to slow down the waters, they contribute significantly to minimizing the downstream erosion, thus keeping the soil in healthier condition
- providing habitat for lot of plants and animals
The wetlands offer nice living conditions for lot of plants and animals. They provide lot of water, often rich in nutrients, shelter, hunting ground, food sources, enabling for numerous different types of ecosystems to develop in them.
