The Amacuzac River is located in
Morelos
Morelos (), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Morelos ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Morelos), is one of the 32 states which comprise the Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided into 36 municipalities and its capital city is Cue ...
, Mexico and it is the most important river of this state being approximately 60 km long. It originates in the slopes of
Nevado de Toluca and empties southwards into the
Balsas River
The Balsas River (Spanish Río Balsas, also locally known as the Mezcala River, or Atoyac River) is a major river of south-central Mexico.
The basin flows through the states of Guerrero, México, Morelos, and Puebla. Downstream of Ciudad Alt ...
. It bisects the
Sierra de Huautla
The Sierra de Huautla is a mountain range and biosphere reserve in central Mexico. Located in southern Morelos, the Sierra de Huautla is a southern extension of the Trans-Mexican Volcanic Belt range into the Balsas Basin. The dry forests of Sierr ...
, and a portion of the river is in the
Sierra de Huautla Biosphere Reserve. The Amacuzac River is known for its rapids which support extreme sports.
Geography
The Amacuzac River is one of the most important tributaries of the Balsas River. It originates on the slopes of the ''Nevado de Toluca'', in the State of Mexico, where it is known as Texcatitlán River. The Amacuzac River runs through the valley of
Almoloya de Alquisiras
Almoloya de Alquisiras is a town and municipality, in Mexico State in Mexico
Mexico ( Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United ...
, after 75 km it reaches the Sierra de Cacahuamilpa, then it disappears at the foot of Jumil Hill and turns into an underground river.
When it emerges the current is known as the Amacuzac River, in the territory of the state of Morelos. The Cuautla River empties into the Amacuzac River and crosses the town of
Amacuzac. It receives the flow of the Chiquito River which collects the waters of Tembembe and Chalma. Finally it reaches the place called Balseadero where it follows its route of about 104 km moving to the southwest, outside Morelos to join the Balsas River.
Environment
The Amacuzac River is located in the tropical zone and It has a hydrological surface of 117,406 km
2, distributed in three sub-regions: High Balsas 50,409 km
2, Middle Balsas 31,951 km
2, and Lower Balsas 35,046 km
2.
A total of 45 species, 32 genera and 10 families of aquatic and semiaquatic beetles live near the Amacuzac River. The climate that prevails near the river is the warm humid, mainly in the low part of Amacuzac River.
The Amacuzac River is the main water body of the
Sierra de Huautla Biosphere Reserve, and flows for over 60 km within the reserve.
Activities
During the rainy season, the Amacuzac River swells enough to support some extreme sports such as rafting. The river is divided into two parts, high and low. The high part is approximately 15 kilometers long and it is quiet. The rivers are classified according to their degree of turbulence, from level I to VI, I being the calmest and VI the most dangerous. In the low part of the Amacuzac River the rapids can be category III or IV.
See also
*
List of rivers of Mexico
This is a list of rivers of Mexico, listed from north to south. There are 246 rivers on this list. Alternate names for rivers are given in parentheses.
Rivers flowing into the Gulf of Mexico
* Río Bravo, the name of the Rio Grande in Mexico
** S ...
References
{{coord missing, Morelos
Balsas River
Rivers of the State of Mexico
Rivers of Morelos
Rivers of Guerrero
Trans-Mexican Volcanic Belt