River floodplains are vast plains located along rivers. In these areas, the river can overflow during floods.

In river valleys, after the course of the river changes, parts of the riverbed with stagnant water - old river beds or "oxbows" - may remain. Some of these oxbows turn into independent lakes or swamps.

Sometimes, part of the soil along the river banks also turns into a swamp. For this reason, the fauna and flora of river floodplains, lakes, and swamps can overlap quite significantly and even have common elements.

The main feature of river floodplains is their ability to retain a large amount of moisture. Additionally, the silty soils are very fertile. This creates favorable conditions for the growth of vegetation and the existence of a high diversity of animals.

Various tree-like plants grew on the banks of ancient Carboniferous period rivers: spore and seed ferns, club mosses, as well as herbaceous forms: mosses, horsetails (Sphenophyllum), and ferns.

Many speci...