What springs flood at what levels?

[karstanimal17]

I was wondering lately if certain springs blow out at certain levels. For example spring A floods at x ft, while spring B floods at y feet, etc. I know it's probably a dumb question, but is there some sort of pattern?

[patpicos]

Peacock is semi predictable....
have a look at the spreadsheet i have done .. https://picardconsulting-my.sharepoi...da55a0789d7861

[patpicos]

madison is not as predictable unfortunately. its so close to the river bank..

Cow is closely related to Peacock but a bit more resilient because of its flow

[Kelly Jessop]

I was wondering lately if certain springs blow out at certain levels. For example spring A floods at x ft, while spring B floods at y feet, etc. I know it's probably a dumb question, but is there some sort of pattern?

Immensely complicated, and drives cave divers up a wall. There is no correct answer because there are so many other variables, for example, how much hydrostatic pressure is there related to a charged aquifer. Some places reverse rather quickly because of vents to the river in the cave,even though there is a substantial spring run. There are some places that have a lot of sinks in the system, such that local rains without significant river height changes can blow out the system.

[patpicos]

try this https://picardconsulting-my.sharepoi...da55a0789d7861 ...playing around with permissions

[Leslie Sapp]

There is no correct answer because there are so many other variables, for example, how much hydrostatic pressure is there related to a charged aquifer.

Exactly this. For example, Hart has been over the seawall for weeks now, and is still crystal clear. However it, and all the lower Suwannee springs, are pumping as hard as I've ever seen them in my lifetime. Back a few years ago during the drought, it would have been black and backflowing into a depleted aquifer while still several feet lower than it is now.

As an example of how much aquifer level/hydrostatic pressure we've lost, there is a series of photos in the Florida archives showing the spring with clear water while in a flood that is overflowing the banks.

[jason]

A nice compact answer is that the springs reverse flow whenever the elevation of the river surface becomes higher than the elevation of the water table. If a persistent drought lowers the water table before a flood, springs reverse at lower river elevations than if there was not a drought. The reason this occurs is because water is pushed from regions of high water table elevation to regions of low water table elevation. Under normal flow conditions, the river is lowest elevation point in the aquifer, and water is pushed from the aquifer to the river. During flood events, however, runoff from low-permeability rocks in the upper basin increases river elevation rapidly and to higher elevations than in the aquifer. As a result, water is pushed from the river into the aquifer.

Peacock is a "special case" where the major river intrusion occurs when a low point in surface topography is over-topped by the river (I seem to recall that elevation is around 28 ft above sea level - but Kelly would know better). I say major intrusion because some intrusion occurs through small vents in the cave prior to a complete reversal.

The floods are important components of aquifer recharge and provide nutrients to support cave ecosystems.