Free Practice Quiz Question List

3 Drainage Basins and Runoff Online Quiz Questions

Use this free practice quiz with 20 questions to review 3 Drainage Basins and Runoff, test your knowledge, and prepare for your next test or exam.

20 questions

Choose one

1 point

When delineating a drainage basin around a river outlet on a topographic map, which route should you trace to identify its divide?

A
Follow the stream valleys that lead into the outlet.
B
Trace the high ground around the outlet, across ridges and slopes.
C
Draw a circle around every channel in the basin.
D
Follow the boundary between the basin's soil types.

Choose one

1 point

A basin contains $24\ \mathrm{km}$ of channels and has an area of $8\ \mathrm{km}^2$ . What is its drainage density?

A
$0.33\ \mathrm{km/km}^2$
B
$2\ \mathrm{km/km}^2$
C
$3\ \mathrm{km/km}^2$
D
$32\ \mathrm{km/km}^2$

Choose one

1 point

A small creek flows into a larger river. Why can the creek's drainage basin also be part of the larger river's basin?

A
Defining an outlet farther downstream can include additional land and smaller basins.
B
A basin's boundary always follows the channel network, regardless of outlet location.
C
A basin cannot contain another drainage basin.
D
The basin's area is fixed once its highest ridge is identified, regardless of outlet.

True or false

1 point

True or false: The area that contributes groundwater to a stream can differ from the surface-water basin delineated using topography.

A
True
B
False

Fill in the blank

1 point

Complete the statement with the hydrological term: Precipitation moving across the land surface or through shallow pathways toward streams is called .

Written response

1 point

What is the hydrological term for the point where a smaller stream joins a larger one?

Written response

1 point

What is the hydrological term for the delay between a rainfall peak and the resulting streamflow peak?

Choose all

1 point

Which are possible fates of precipitation in a drainage basin before it reaches the outlet as streamflow? Select all that apply.

A
Some evaporates.
B
All of it must leave the basin as streamflow.
C
Some is taken up by plants.
D
Some remains in soil or infiltrates more deeply to recharge groundwater.

True or false

1 point

True or false: If a basin's soil is already saturated, it generally has less capacity to absorb additional rainfall than dry soil.

A
True
B
False

Fill in the blank

1 point

Complete the statement with the hydrological term: Small streams in the upstream parts of a stream network are called .

Choose all

1 point

Which conditions tend to make runoff reach streams more quickly during a storm? Select all that apply.

A
The soil is saturated before the storm.
B
The basin has extensive wetlands that temporarily store water.
C
Roads and roofs route water rapidly toward drains and streams.
D
The slopes are steep.

Choose one

1 point

A basin contains wetlands and small lakes. Which effect can these features have during a storm?

A
It makes all precipitation infiltrate deeply into groundwater.
B
It can temporarily hold water and delay its movement downstream.
C
It guarantees that the streamflow peak will be lower in every storm.
D
It prevents any water from reaching the basin outlet.

True or false

1 point

True or false: Water held temporarily in a wetland or lake may reach downstream channels later than it otherwise would.

A
True
B
False

Choose one

1 point

A small creek joins a larger river. Which area is the creek’s drainage basin if its outlet is defined as the point where it joins the river?

A
Only the channel immediately upstream of the outlet
B
The land area from which water drains to the specified outlet
C
The high ground separating the outlet from the nearest river
D
The area where groundwater and surface water always follow the same boundaries

Written response

1 point

What is the term for the boundary that separates neighboring drainage basins?

Written response

1 point

What term describes precipitation that moves across the land surface or through shallow pathways toward streams?

Choose one

1 point

A neighborhood adds many paved roads and roofs, with storm drains connected to a nearby creek. What change in storm runoff is most likely?

A
It slows runoff because roads and roofs store rainfall in the soil.
B
It reduces peak flow because drains prevent water from reaching streams.
C
It can increase and speed up runoff by routing water rapidly toward drains and streams.
D
It has no effect unless the basin is completely flat.

Choose one

1 point

Two otherwise similar basins receive the same storm. One basin’s soil is already saturated from earlier rain, while the other’s soil is dry. Which response is more likely in the saturated basin?

A
The later storm is more likely to produce runoff because saturated soil has less capacity to absorb more water.
B
The later storm is less likely to produce runoff because saturated soil releases all its water immediately.
C
The soil condition has no effect once precipitation begins.
D
The later storm must produce less runoff because earlier precipitation filled the stream channels.

Choose one

1 point

A basin contains wetlands that temporarily hold stormwater. What effect can this storage have on water moving toward the basin outlet?

A
They make water move more quickly to the outlet by steepening the basin’s slopes.
B
They can temporarily store water and delay its movement downstream.
C
They prevent any water from eventually reaching streams.
D
They increase drainage density by turning every depression into a channel.

Open ended

1 point

Two storms deliver the same total precipitation to a basin, but the rain falls over different parts of the basin in each storm. Explain why the storms could produce different basin responses, and why the total precipitation alone is not enough to predict the exact response.

3 Drainage Basins and Runoff Online Quiz Questions

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