In geology, river capture is an event in which one river or stream captures or intercepts part of another. River captures are natural rather than man-made events. A variety of mechanisms can cause river capture, but the two most common causes are catastrophic geological events (earthquakes or earth tremors and consequent large scale crustal deformations; land slips) and erosion, where the course of one river moves laterally and eventually cuts into the course of another. Jump to: navigation, search Geology (from Greek γη- (ge-, the earth) and λογος (logos, word, reason)) is the science and study of the Earth, its composition, structure, physical properties, history, and the processes that shape it. ... Jump to: navigation, search Global earthquake epicenters, 1963–1998 An earthquake is a sudden and sometimes catastrophic movement of a part of the Earths surface. ... Global earthquake epicenters, 1963–1998 An earthquake is a trembling or a shaking movement of the Earths surface. ... // Description A landslide is a geological phenomenon which includes a wide range of ground movement, such as rock falls, deep failure of slopes, and shallow debris flows, see flow. ... Look up Erosion on Wiktionary, the free dictionary Severe soil erosion in a wheat field near Washington State University, USA. Erosion is the displacement of solids (soil, mud, rock, and so forth) by the agents of wind, water, ice, movement in response to gravity, or living organisms (in the case...

River capture is a shaping force in the biogeography or distribution of many freshwater fish species. Biogeography is the science which deals with questions of species patterns of distribution and the process that resulted in such patterns. ... For the village on the Isle of Wight, see Freshwater, Isle of Wight. ... Jump to: navigation, search Groups Conodonta Hyperoartia Petromyzontidae (lampreys) Pteraspidomorphi (early jawless fish) Thelodonti Anaspida Cephalaspidomorphi (early jawless fish) Galeaspida Pituriaspida Osteostraci Gnathostomata (jawed vertebrates) Placodermi Chondrichthyes (cartilaginous fish) Acanthodii Osteichthyes (bony fish) Actinopterygii (ray-finned fish) Sarcopterygii (lobe-finned fish) Actinistia (coelacanths) Dipnoi (lungfish) A fish is a poikilothermic...

Example: Australian freshwater fish

Australia provides a particularly fascinating series of examples of freshwater fish species and distributions resulting from river capture events. The formerly massive Great Dividing Range runs the length of the eastern coastline of Australia and has isolated native freshwater fish populations east and west of the range for millions of years. In the last couple of million years erosion has reduced the Great Dividing Range to a critical point where west-to-east river capture events have been possible. A number of native fish species that originated in the Murray-Darling river sytem to the west are (or were) found naturally occurring in a number of coastal systems spanning almost the entire length of the range. Jump to: navigation, search The Great Divide runs around the entire eastern and south-eastern edge of Australia The Great Dividing Range (a. ... A branch of the Murray in its middle reaches, near Howlong, New South Wales The Murray River is Australias second-longest river in its own right (the longest being its tributary the Darling). ... The Darling in unusually good condition, near Bourke The Darling River is the longest river in Australia, flowing 2,739km from northern New South Wales to its confluence with the Murray River at Wentworth, New South Wales. ...

None of the river capture events that allowed native fish of the Murray-Darling system to cross into and colonise these East Coast river systems seem to have formed permanent linkages. The colonising Murray-Darling fish in these East Coast river systems have therefore become isolated from their parent species, and due to isolation, the founder effect, genetic drift and natural selection, have become separate species (see allopatric speciation). The founder effect is an evolutionary phenomenon. ... Genetic drift is a mechanism of evolution that acts in concert with natural selection to change the characteristics of species over time. ... Natural selection is a process by which biological populations are altered over time, as a result of the propagation of heritable traits that affect the capacity of individual organisms to survive and reproduce. ... Allopatric speciation (also known as Allopatry) is speciation by geographical isolation. ...

Examples include:

• Golden Perch (Dawson-Fitzroy river system, central Queensland).
• Eel-tailed Catfish (several rivers, northern New South Wales)
• Macquarie Perch (Hawkesbury-Nepean rivers, Shoalhaven River, southern New South Wales).
• River Blackfish (multiple rivers, Victoria).
• Murray Cod, whose eastern species/subspecies are:
  • Eastern Freshwater Cod (Clarence River system, northern New South Wales. It was also found in the Richmond River system in New South Wales but that population is now extinct.)
  • Brisbane River Cod (Brisbane River system, southern Queensland. That population is now extinct, and its exact taxonomic status is not known.)
  • The Mary River Cod (Mary River, southern/central Queensland.)
• The Mountain Galaxias species complex (multiple rivers, southern Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria).

Olive Perchlet (Ambassis agassizii), Western Carp Gudgeon (Hypseleotris klungzingeri), Pygmy Perch (Nannoperca australis) and Australian Smelt (Retropinna semoni) also appear to have made crossings into coastal systems, the last two species seemingly many times as they are found in most or all coastal streams in south eastern Australia as well as the Murray-Darling system! Binomial name Macquaria ambigua (Richardson, 1845) The Golden Perch, Macquaria ambigua is an Australian native freshwater fish, primarily of lowland reaches of the Murray-Darling river system, but also known to push some way into upland reaches as well. ... There are two rivers named the Fitzroy River, both in Australia: Fitzroy River, Queensland Fitzroy River, Western Australia This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ... Motto: Audax at Fidelis (Bold but Faithful) Nickname: Sunshine State/Smart State Other Australian states and territories Capital Brisbane Government Governor Premier Const. ... Binomial name Tandanus tandanus (Mitchell, 1838) // Range The Eel-tailed Catfish, Tandanus tandanus, is a freshwater fish native to the Murray-Darling river system of Australia. ... Motto: Orta Recens Quam Pura Nites (Newly Risen, How Brightly You Shine) Nickname: First State, Premier State Other Australian states and territories Capital Sydney Government Governor Premier Const. ... Binomial name Macquaria australasica Cuvier in Cuvier and Valenciennes, 1830 The Macquarie Perch, Macquaria australasica, is an Australian native freshwater fish of the Murray-Darling river system. ... Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... The Nepean River is a river in the coastal region of New South Wales, Australia. ... The Shoalhaven River is a river on the south coast of New South Wales, Australia. ... Motto: Orta Recens Quam Pura Nites (Newly Risen, How Brightly You Shine) Nickname: First State, Premier State Other Australian states and territories Capital Sydney Government Governor Premier Const. ... Binomial name Gadopsis marmoratus Richardson, 1848 The River Blackfish, Gadopsis marmoratus is an Australian freshwater perch. ... Motto: Peace and Prosperity Nickname: Garden State Other Australian states and territories Capital Melbourne Government Governor Premier Const. ... Trinomial name Maccullochella peelii peelii (Mitchell, 1838) The Murray Cod (Maccullochella peelii peelii) is the largest freshwater fish in Australia. ... Binomial name Maccullochella ikei Rowland, 1986 Eastern Freshwater Cod (Maccullochella ikei), also known as Eastern Cod, are a freshwater fish belonging to the family Percichthyidae; they are not a true cod. ... At least three rivers called the Clarence River: Australia The Clarence River flows through Australia Canada/USA The Clarence River rises in the Yukon Territory of Canada and crosses back and forth across the border several times into the U.S. state of Alaska. ... Motto: Orta Recens Quam Pura Nites (Newly Risen, How Brightly You Shine) Nickname: First State, Premier State Other Australian states and territories Capital Sydney Government Governor Premier Const. ... The estuary of the Richmond River at Ballina The Richmond River is a river in the northeastern corner of New South Wales, Australia. ... Motto: Orta Recens Quam Pura Nites (Newly Risen, How Brightly You Shine) Nickname: First State, Premier State Other Australian states and territories Capital Sydney Government Governor Premier Const. ... A form of Maccullochella cod that occurred naturally in the Brisbane River system, an East Coast river system in eastern Australia. ... Captain Cook Bridge from Kangaroo Point Lookout Goodwill Bridge - and the CityCat on the Brisbane River. ... Motto: Audax at Fidelis (Bold but Faithful) Nickname: Sunshine State/Smart State Other Australian states and territories Capital Brisbane Government Governor Premier Const. ... Trinomial name Maccullochella peelii mariensis Rowland, 1993 Mary River Cod (Maccullochella peelii mariensis) are a Maccullochella cod found in the coastal Mary River system of central Queensland, Australia. ... Motto: Audax at Fidelis (Bold but Faithful) Nickname: Sunshine State/Smart State Other Australian states and territories Capital Brisbane Government Governor Premier Const. ... Binomial name Galaxias olidus Günther, 1866 Galaxias fuscus Mack, 1936 The Mountain Galaxias species complex is a group of freshwater Galaxiid fish found all over southeast Australia. ... In biology, a cryptic species complex is a group of species that satisfy the scientific definition of species — that is, they are reproductively isolated from each other — but which are anatomically indistinguishable. ... Motto: Audax at Fidelis (Bold but Faithful) Nickname: Sunshine State/Smart State Other Australian states and territories Capital Brisbane Government Governor Premier Const. ... Motto: Orta Recens Quam Pura Nites (Newly Risen, How Brightly You Shine) Nickname: First State, Premier State Other Australian states and territories Capital Sydney Government Governor Premier Const. ... Motto: Peace and Prosperity Nickname: Garden State Other Australian states and territories Capital Melbourne Government Governor Premier Const. ... Binomial name Hypseleotris klunzingeri Ogilby, 1898 The Western Carp Gudgeon, Hypseleotris klunzingeri, is a carp gudgeon. ... Australian Smelt (Retropinna semoni) A small pelagic forage fish common in lowland areas of the Murray-Darling basin as well as other Australian drainages including East Coast drainages. ... Semi-arid grazing country near Burra Creek, South Australia The Murray-Darling Basin drains one-seventh of Australia and is by far the most significant agricultural area on that continent. ...

Unfortunately, with the exception of Eastern Freshwater Cod and Mary River Cod, it has not been widely recognised that these coastal populations of Murray-Darling native fish are separate species and their classifications have not been updated to reflect this. Many are threatened and two, the Richmond River Cod and the Brisbane River Cod, have become extinct. Binomial name Maccullochella ikei Rowland, 1986 Eastern Freshwater Cod (Maccullochella ikei), also known as Eastern Cod, are a freshwater fish belonging to the family Percichthyidae; they are not a true cod. ... Trinomial name Maccullochella peelii mariensis Rowland, 1993 Mary River Cod (Maccullochella peelii mariensis) are a Maccullochella cod found in the coastal Mary River system of central Queensland, Australia. ... A form of Maccullochella cod, now believed to have been Eastern Freshwater Cod (Maccullochella ikei), that occurred naturally in the Richmond River system, an East Coast river system in eastern Australia. ... A form of Maccullochella cod that occurred naturally in the Brisbane River system, an East Coast river system in eastern Australia. ...