Tinaja

Tinaja is a term used in the American Southwest for water pockets formed in bedrock depressions that occur below waterfalls or are carved out by spring flow or seepage.^[1] Tinajas are important sources of surface water storage in these arid environments.^[2] These relatively rare landforms are important ecologically because they support unique plant communities and provide important services to terrestrial wildlife.^[3]

References

1. ^ Osterkamp, W. R. 2008. Annotated Definitions of Selected Geomorphic Terms and Related Terms of Hydrology, Sedimentology, Soil Science and Ecology: Reston, Virginia, Open File Report 2008-1217, pp 49
2. ^ Brown, T. B. and R. R. Johnson. 1983. The distribution of bedrock depressions (tinajas) as sources of surface water in Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument, Arizona. Journal of the Arizona-Nevada Academy of Science 18: 61-68.
3. ^ National Park Service (NPS). 2006. Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument Ecological Monitoring Report, 1997–2005, Chapter 14: Water Quality. Available at http://www.nps.gov/orpi/naturescience/orpi-ecological-monitoring-report.htm