The Cache River is a tributary

Tributary

A tributary or affluent is a stream or river that flows into a main stem river or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean...

 of the White River

White River (Arkansas)

The White River is a 722-mile long river that flows through the U.S. states of Arkansas and Missouri.-Course:The source of the White River is in the Boston Mountains of northwest Arkansas, in the Ozark-St. Francis National Forest southeast of Fayetteville...

, 213 mi (343 km) long, in northeastern Arkansas

Arkansas

Arkansas is a state located in the southern region of the United States. Its name is an Algonquian name of the Quapaw Indians. Arkansas shares borders with six states , and its eastern border is largely defined by the Mississippi River...

 in the United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

. Its headwaters also drain a small portion of southeastern Missouri

Missouri

Missouri is a US state located in the Midwestern United States, bordered by Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska. With a 2010 population of 5,988,927, Missouri is the 18th most populous state in the nation and the fifth most populous in the Midwest. It...

. Via the White River, the Cache is part of the Mississippi River

Mississippi River

The Mississippi River is the largest river system in North America. Flowing entirely in the United States, this river rises in western Minnesota and meanders slowly southwards for to the Mississippi River Delta at the Gulf of Mexico. With its many tributaries, the Mississippi's watershed drains...

 watershed

Drainage basin

A drainage basin is an extent or an area of land where surface water from rain and melting snow or ice converges to a single point, usually the exit of the basin, where the waters join another waterbody, such as a river, lake, reservoir, estuary, wetland, sea, or ocean...

.

The Cache is formed by a confluence

Confluence (geography)

In geography, a confluence is the meeting of two or more bodies of water. It usually refers to the point where two streams flow together, merging into a single stream...

 of agricultural ditches in Butler County, Missouri

Butler County, Missouri

Butler County is a county located in the southeast Ozark Foothills Region in Southeast Missouri in the United States. As of the 2010 U.S. Census, the county's population was 42,794. The largest city and county seat is Poplar Bluff. The county was officially organized from Wayne County on February...

 and soon enters Arkansas, flowing generally south-southwestwardly. Several portions of the river's upper course have been straightened and channelized

River engineering

River engineering is the process of planned human intervention in the course, characteristics or flow of a river with the intention of producing some defined benefit. People have intervened in the natural course and behaviour of rivers since before recorded history - to manage the water resources,...

. It joins the White River at the town of Clarendon, Arkansas

Clarendon, Arkansas

Clarendon is a city in Monroe County, Arkansas, United States. The population was 1,960 at the 2000 census. The city is the county seat of Monroe County.-Geography:Clarendon is located at ....

.

The river is a slow muddy river with meandering channels, slough

Swamp

A swamp is a wetland with some flooding of large areas of land by shallow bodies of water. A swamp generally has a large number of hammocks, or dry-land protrusions, covered by aquatic vegetation, or vegetation that tolerates periodical inundation. The two main types of swamp are "true" or swamp...

s, swampy areas, and oxbow lake

Oxbow lake

An oxbow lake is a U-shaped body of water formed when a wide meander from the main stem of a river is cut off to create a lake. This landform is called an oxbow lake for the distinctive curved shape, named after part of a yoke for oxen. In Australia, an oxbow lake is called a billabong, derived...

s.

The name of the river is probably a Picardie

Picard language

Picard is a language closely related to French, and as such is one of the larger group of Romance languages. It is spoken in two regions in the far north of France – Nord-Pas-de-Calais and Picardy – and in parts of the Belgian region of Wallonia, the district of Tournai and a part of...

 word meaning "hunt" as a reference to the abundant wildlife along the river. The first explorer into the area was Father Marquette, for whom Picard was the native tongue.

The low-lying areas in the vicinity of the river's lower course are a popular destination for duck

Duck

Duck is the common name for a large number of species in the Anatidae family of birds, which also includes swans and geese. The ducks are divided among several subfamilies in the Anatidae family; they do not represent a monophyletic group but a form taxon, since swans and geese are not considered...

 hunters

Hunting

Hunting is the practice of pursuing any living thing, usually wildlife, for food, recreation, or trade. In present-day use, the term refers to lawful hunting, as distinguished from poaching, which is the killing, trapping or capture of the hunted species contrary to applicable law...

. The Cache River National Wildlife Refuge

Cache River National Wildlife Refuge

The Cache River National Wildlife Refuge is a 55,000 acre wildlife refuge in the state of Arkansas managed by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service. The refuge is one of the Ramsar wetlands of international importance under the Ramsar Convention signed in 1971...

 along the lower river is the largest remaining tract of contiguous bottomland hardwood forest found in North America. The refuge is also the most important wintering area for mallard ducks and other migratory waterfowl on the continent.

The river supports 53 mammalian species, over 200 bird species, and nearly 50 species of reptiles and amphibians. The area has the only remaining population of native black bears in the state. This is also where the ivory-billed woodpecker

Ivory-billed Woodpecker

The Ivory-billed Woodpecker is or was one of the largest woodpeckers in the world, at roughly 20 inches in length and 30 inches in wingspan. It was native to the virgin forests of the southeastern United States...

 was recently speculated to have been sighted (after it was believed to be extinct for 60 years).

During the American Civil War

American Civil War

The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...

, the Battle of Cotton Plant

Battle of Cotton Plant

The Battle of Cotton Plant occurred on July 7, 1862 in Woodruff County, Arkansas, during the American Civil War.During the summer of 1862, Union Maj. Gen. Samuel R...

 was fought along the Cache River at the town of Cotton Plant

Cotton Plant, Arkansas

Cotton Plant is a city in Woodruff County, Arkansas, United States. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 960.-Geography:Cotton Plant is located at ....

.