Paraná Delta
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Dawn in the Paraná Delta

The Paraná Delta is the delta of the Paraná River in Argentina. The Paraná flows north–south and becomes an alluvial basin (a flood plain) between the Argentine provinces of Entre Ríos and Santa Fe, then emptying into the Río de la Plata.

The Paraná Delta has an area of about 14,000 km² and starts to form between the cities of Santa Fe and Rosario, where the river splits into several arms, creating a network of islands and wetlands. Most of it is located in the jurisdiction of Entre Ríos, and parts in the north of Buenos Aires. It is conventionally divided into three parts:t

• the Upper Delta, from the Diamante – Puerto Gaboto line to Villa Constitución;
• the Middle Delta, from Villa Constitución to the Ibicuy Islands;
• the Lower Delta, from the Ibicuy Islands to the mouth of the river.

A typical house on stilts in Tigre, Buenos Aires (Lower Delta)

The total length of the delta is about 320 km, and its width varies between 18 and 60 km. It carries 200 million tonnes of suspended sediment (about half of it coming from the Bermejo River through the Paraguay River) and advances several tens of metres (50 or up to 90, according to different sources) per year over the Río de la Plata. It is the world's only river delta that is in contact not with the sea but with another river.

The Lower Delta was the site of the first modern settlements in the Paraná-Plata basin and is today densely populated, being the agricultural and industrial core of Argentina and host to several major ports. The main course of the Paraná lies on the west of the delta, and is navigable downstream from Puerto General San Martín by ships up to Panamax kind.

Rivers of the delta

Among the many arms of the river are the Paraná Pavón, the Paraná Ibicuy, the Paraná de las Palmas, the Paraná Guazú and the smaller Paraná Miní and Paraná Bravo.

The Parana Pavón is the first major branch. It has a meandering course that starts on the eastern side, opposite Villa Constitución. Between the main Paraná and the Paraná Pavón lie the Lechiguanas Islands. The Paraná Pavón flows east and then turns south to be continued by the Ibicuy, which itself gives origin to the smaller Paranacito River, a tributary of the Uruguay River that passes by Villa Paranacito.

The Paraná de las Palmas starts around the mouth of the Paraná Ibicuy, downstream from Baradero, flowing west into the province of Buenos Aires and then turning southeast again. The main course is continued by the other major branch, the Paraná Guazú. In turn, the Paraná Guazú sprouts two east-flowing branches in the territory of Entre Ríos: first the Paraná Bravo, and then the Paraná Miní.

Ecology

The flood plain of the river is part of the Paraná Delta and Islands Ecoregion. The original ecosystem, especially in the Lower Delta, has been heavily modified by deforestation, hunting, fishing and the introduction of foreign species of flora, as well as damaged by domestic and industrial pollution. It hosts species such as the Marsh Deer, the capybara, the Neotropical River Otter, the Pampas Cat, the jaguar, the coypu and the Red-faced Guan (Penelope dabbenei), some of them endangered.

Protected areas

The Predelta National Park, created in 1992, protects a sample of the Upper Delta. It is located in the southwest of Entre Ríos, 6 km south of Diamante, and has an area of 24.58 km², occupied by low-lying islands subject to flooding, as well as lagoons and swamps. The Biosphere Reserve of the Paraná Delta is composed of the second and third sections of the Islands of the San Fernando Delta, located just north of Buenos Aires. It was declared a natural reserve in 2000 by UNESCO.

Semi-flooded islands in the Upper Delta, off the coast of Rosario

It takes up 886 km², of which 106 km² are the core protected area. It is an area rich in biodiversity, including species that find their southernmost limit of distribution, which makes the area interesting for the conservation of genetic diversity. The main human activity in this part of the delta is the exploitation of the willow forest for commercial purposes, and human impact is low. The region has suffered from a loss of human population and today there are only 3,600 habitants living there (2001). The establishment of the Biosphere Reserve aims at revitalizing the economy of the region at the same time as conserving the natural and cultural values of the area and support the investigation and study of the ecosystem with the possibilities of national and international investment in projects of sustainable growth and the grouping of the region in reference of organic cultivation and varied ways of land-forest production with certification of ecological quality.

See also

• Tigre, Buenos Aires
• Villa Paranacito, Entre Ríos

References

• (Spanish) Todo Argentina, Provincia de Entre Ríos. Área Natural Delta del Paraná
• (Spanish) Partido de Tigre, Geografía. El Delta del Paraná
• (Spanish) Diamante-Coronda. Delta del Paraná
• (Spanish) La Hueya. Área Natural Delta del Paraná
• (Spanish) ArgentinaXplora. Reserva de Biosfera Delta del Paraná
• (Spanish) SiOL.net. El Río Paraná
• (Spanish) Prof. Roberto F. Bó. Grupo de Investigaciones en Ecología de Humedales (GIEH). Laboratorio de Ecología Regional. Departamento de Ecología, Genética y Evolución. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales (FCEN), Universidad de Buenos Aires (UBA). Ecorregión Delta e Islas del Paraná.
• (Spanish) Administración de Parques Nacionales. Parque Nacional Predelta.