# Puddle

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{{short description|Small accumulation of liquid, usually water, on a surface}}
{{About|the liquid phenomenon}}
[[File:Begliktash puddle Бегликташ локва — копия.jpg|thumb|[Reflection](/source/Reflection_(physics))s in a forest puddle]]

A '''puddle''' is a small accumulation of liquid, usually water, on a surface.<ref>{{Cite web | url=http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/puddle | title=Definition of PUDDLE| date=8 January 2024}}</ref> It can form either by pooling in a depression on the surface, or by [surface tension](/source/surface_tension) upon a flat surface. Puddles are often characterized by murky water or [mud](/source/mud) due to the disturbance and dissolving of surrounding sediment, primarily due to [precipitation](/source/precipitation). 

Generally a puddle is shallow enough to walk through, and too small to traverse with a [boat](/source/boat) or [raft](/source/raft). Small wildlife may be attracted to puddles. 

==Natural puddles and wildlife==
[[File:Tadorna tadorna (Tadorne de Belon) - 363.jpg|thumb|A [common shelduck](/source/common_shelduck) drinking from a puddle]]
Puddles in [natural landscape](/source/natural_landscape)s and [habitat](/source/habitat)s, when not resulting from [precipitation](/source/precipitation), can indicate the presence of a [seep](/source/Seep_(hydrology)) or [spring](/source/Spring_(hydrology)). Small seasonal [riparian](/source/riparian) plants, [grasses](/source/grasses), and [wildflower](/source/wildflower)s can germinate with the ephemeral "head start" of moisture provided by a puddle.

Small wildlife, such as birds and insects, can use puddles as a source of essential moisture or for bathing. Raised constructed puddles, [bird bath](/source/bird_bath)s, are a part of domestic and [wildlife garden](/source/wildlife_garden)s as a [garden ornament](/source/garden_ornament) and "micro-habitat" [restoration](/source/Ecological_restoration). [Swallow](/source/Swallow)s use the damp [loam](/source/loam) which gathers in puddles as a form of [cement](/source/cement) to help to build their nests. Many [butterfly](/source/butterfly) species and some other insects, but particularly male butterflies, need puddles for [nutrient](/source/nutrient)s they can contain, such as [salt](/source/salt_(chemistry))s and [amino acid](/source/amino_acid)s. In a behaviour known as [puddling](/source/Puddling_(behavior)) they seek out the damp mud that can be found around the edge of the puddles.<ref>Adler, P.H. and Pearson, D.L. (1982) "Why do male butterflies visit mud puddles?". ''Canadian Journal of Zoology'', '''60''' (3): 322–325. {{doi|10.1139/z82-043}}</ref>

For some smaller forms of life, such as [tadpole](/source/tadpole)s or [mosquito](/source/mosquito) larvae, a puddle can form an entire habitat. Puddles that do not evaporate quickly can become [standing water](/source/standing_water), which can become [polluted](/source/pollution) by decaying organisms and are often home to breeding [mosquito](/source/mosquito)s, which can act as vectors for diseases such as [malaria](/source/malaria) and, of more recent concern in certain areas of the world, [West Nile virus](/source/West_Nile_virus).

==Puddles on roads==
[[File:Moisture and puddles on muddy road.jpg|thumb|left|Puddles formed from rainwater, filling [pothole](/source/pothole)s on a road]]
Puddles commonly form during [rain](/source/rain), and can cause problems for transport. Due to the angle of the road, puddles tend to be forced by gravity to gather on the edges of the road. This can cause [splashing](/source/splash_(fluid_mechanics)) as cars drive through the puddles, which causes water to be sprayed onto [pedestrian](/source/pedestrian)s on the pavement. Irresponsible drivers may do this deliberately, which, in some countries, can lead to prosecution for careless driving.<ref>[https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/somerset/4392092.stm Driver fined over puddle splash] ''BBC News'', 31 October 2005.</ref>

Puddles commonly form in [potholes](/source/potholes) in a dirt road, or in any other space with a shallow depression and dirt. In such cases, these are sometimes referred to as ''mud puddles'', because mud tends to form in the bottoms, resulting in dirtied wheels or boots when disturbed.

In order to deal with puddles, roads and pavements are often built with a [camber](/source/Cant_(road%2Frail)) (technically called 'crowning'), being slightly convex in nature, to force puddles to drain into the gutter, which has [storm drain](/source/storm_drain) grates to allow the water to drain into the sewers. In addition, some surfaces are made to be porous, allowing the water to drain through the surface to the [aquifer](/source/aquifer) below.

==Physics==
[[File:Exploring new continents 1200728.JPG|thumb|Small puddles held together by [surface tension](/source/surface_tension)]]
Due to the action of [surface tension](/source/surface_tension), small puddles can also form if a liquid is spilt on a level surface. Puddles like this are common on kitchen floors. Puddles tend to [evaporate](/source/evaporation) quickly due to the high surface-area-to-volume ratio. In cold conditions puddles can form [patches of ice](/source/Black_ice) which are slippery and difficult to see and can be a hazard to road vehicles and pedestrians.

==Children==
Puddles are a source of recreation for children, who often like jumping in puddles as an "up-side" to rain.<ref >{{Cite magazine
  |title=Splash! What Kids Discover in a Puddle
  |date=25 March 2014
  |author=Siu-Lan Tan 
  |magazine=[Psychology Today](/source/Psychology_Today)
  |url=https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/what-shapes-film/201403/splash-what-kids-discover-in-puddle
}}</ref><ref >{{Cite web
  |title=Why Splashing in Mud Puddles Is Beneficial for Children
  |date=24 May 2016 
  |author=Ranko Rajovic
  |publisher=[Novak Djokovic Foundation](/source/Novak_Djokovic_Foundation)
  |url=https://novakdjokovicfoundation.org/splashing-mud-puddles-beneficial-children/
}}</ref><ref >{{Cite web
  |title=Play in a Puddle on a Rainy Day
  |author=Meredith Burton
  |website=[National Association for the Education of Young Children](/source/National_Association_for_the_Education_of_Young_Children)
  |url=https://families.naeyc.org/child-development/play-puddle-rainy-day
}}</ref><ref >{{Cite magazine
  |title=The joys of jumping in puddles
  |date=6 August 2010
  |author=Catherine O'Dolan
  |magazine=Junior
  |url=http://www.juniormagazine.co.uk/baby-and-toddler/the-joys-of-jumping-in-puddles/2474.html
}}</ref> A children's [nursery rhyme](/source/nursery_rhyme) records the story of [Doctor Foster](/source/Doctor_Foster_(nursery_rhyme)) and his encounter with a puddle in Gloucester. Muddy puddles, and the pleasures of splashing mud in them, are a repeated theme in the children's animation [Peppa Pig](/source/Peppa_Pig), to the extent of selling character-branded [Wellington boot](/source/Wellington_boot)s.

==See also==
{{div col|colwidth=24em}}
* [Black ice](/source/Black_ice)
* [''Puddle'' (M. C. Escher)](/source/Puddle_(M._C._Escher))
* [Puddling (biology)](/source/Mud-puddling)
* [Pond](/source/Pond), a somewhat larger accumulation of liquid on a surface
* [Puddling (civil engineering)](/source/Puddling_(civil_engineering))
* [Puddling (metallurgy)](/source/Puddling_(metallurgy))
* [Rill](/source/Rill)
* [Seep (hydrology)](/source/Seep_(hydrology))
* [Spring (hydrology)](/source/Spring_(hydrology))
{{div col end}}

== References ==
{{Reflist|colwidth=35em}}

== Further reading ==
{{Commons category|Puddles}}
{{refbegin}}
* Adler PH (1982) [https://web.archive.org/web/20120402010954/http://peabody.research.yale.edu/jls/pdfs/1980s/1982/1982-36(3)161-Adler.pdf "Soil and puddle visiting habits of moths"] ''Journal of the Lepidopterists' Society,'' '''36''': 161–173.
* Allocco, Maria (1999) [https://web.archive.org/web/20120509210709/http://tpt.aapt.org/resource/1/phteah/v37/i8/p468_s1?isAuthorized=no "Puddle of light"] ''Phys. Teach.'' '''37''': 468.
* McLachlan A and Ladle R (2001) [http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1017/S1464793101005723/abstract "Life in the puddle: behavioural and life-cycle adaptations in the Diptera of tropical rain pools"] ''Biological Reviews,''  '''76''' (3): 377–388. {{doi|10.1017/S1464793101005723}}
* Royston, Angela (2005) [https://books.google.com/books/about/Water.html?id=ws_62xOdAYQC ''Water: Let's Look at a Puddle''] Heinemann/Raintree. {{ISBN|978-1-4034-7685-2}}.
* Weiss, Peter (2004) [http://www.phschool.com/science/science_news/articles/piddly_puddle_peril.html "Piddly puddle peril: Little water pools foil road friction"] ''Science News,'' '''166'''(20): 308. {{doi|10.2307/4015763}}
{{refend}}

{{pond}}

<!--sense 'Een kleine hoeveelheid vloeistof'--><!--earlier entry 'nl:Poel (water)' is always larger: a pool (up to a small lake) -->

Category:Bodies of water
Category:Springs (hydrology)
Category:Limnology
Category:Habitats
Category:Bird feeding
Category:Ecological restoration
Category:Rain

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Puddle](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Puddle) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Puddle?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.