The Lacantún River is a river in

Chiapas Chiapas (; Tzotzil language, Tzotzil and Tzeltal language, Tzeltal: ''Chyapas'' ), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Chiapas ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Chiapas), is one of the states that make up the Political divisions of Mexico, ...

state of southern

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 States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

. It is a tributuary of the

Usumacinta River The Usumacinta River (; named after the howler monkey) is a river in southeastern Mexico and northwestern Guatemala. It is formed by the junction of the Pasión River, which arises in the Sierra de Santa Cruz (Guatemala), Sierra de Santa Cruz ...

. The Lacantún originates in the Chiapas Highlands, and runs southeastwards nearly to the

Guatemala Guatemala ( ; ), officially the Republic of Guatemala ( es, República de Guatemala, links=no), is a country in Central America. It is bordered to the north and west by Mexico; to the northeast by Belize and the Caribbean; to the east by H ...

n border, where it turns northeastwards to join the

. Its main highlands tributary is the Jataté River. The lower portion of the river runs through the

Lacandon Forest The Lacandon Jungle (Spanish: ''Selva Lacandona'') is an area of rainforest which stretches from Chiapas, Mexico, into Guatemala. The heart of this rainforest is located in the Montes Azules Biosphere Reserve in Chiapas near the border with Guate ...

. Its tributary the

Ixcán River The Ixcán River is a river in Guatemala. The river flows northwards from its sources in the Sierra de los Cuchumatanes in Huehuetenango, marks the border with El Quiché for a number of kilometers, and crosses the border with Mexico at 16.074929� ...

, which originates in the Guatemalan Highlands to the south, joins the Lacantún near where it turns northwards. The Lacantún forms the southern boundary of Montes Azules and Lacan-Tun

biosphere reserves Man and the Biosphere Programme (MAB) is an intergovernmental scientific program, launched in 1971 by UNESCO, that aims to establish a scientific basis for the improvement of relationships between people and their environments. MAB's work engag ...

before joining the Usumacinta.

References

*Atlas of Mexico, 1975 (https://web.archive.org/web/20111107163257/http://www.lib.utexas.edu/maps/atlas_mexico/river_basins.jpg). *The Prentice Hall American World Atlas, 1984. *Rand McNally, The New International Atlas, 1993. Rivers of Chiapas Usumacinta River Petén–Veracruz moist forests {{Mexico-river-stub

See also

References