oxbow

plural oxbows

1. A U-shaped piece of wood used as a collar for an ox, the upper parts of which are fastened to its yoke.
2. A meander in a river; the land enclosed by such a loop.
3. abbreviationShort for oxbow lake.

   Old oxbows ('mortlakes') are often rich in plants and animals including rarer ones which have been eliminated from the main channel by pollution or management since the separation.

   1982, Tony Hopkins, Pat Brassley, Wildlife of Rivers and Canals (page 45)

1. An unincorporated township in Aroostook County, Maine.
2. A town in North Dakota.
3. A town in Saskatchewan, Canada.