La cuenca del río Conchos, ubicada en el estado de Chihuahua (Norte de México), se encuentra

dentro de la Región Hidrológica 24 Río Bravo-Conchos (CNA, 2001) con 68,387 km2 (Carreón et al.,
2001; Fig. 1). El río Conchos es tributario del río Bravo y su cuenca ocupa un 14 % del área total,
presenta un desnivel altitudinal que oscila de 2,348 msnm en su cabecera a 841 msnm al unirse al
río Bravo. Su longitud es de alrededor de 850 km y presenta una amplia diversidad de dominios
climáticos: templado en la parte alta, semiárido en la media y árido en la baja (Aboites-Aguilar,
2002). Desde el punto de vista fisiográfico la cuenca alta pertenece a la zona montañosa; la media
al altiplano o valles centrales; y la cuenca baja, a la región árida

The Conchos river basin have 68,387 km2(in addition 140 km2 were lost due to antropogenic
activities). The Conchos River is a tributary of the Bravo River and its basin occupies 14% of the
total area, with an altitudinal difference that ranges from 2,348 masl at its headwaters to 841 masl
when it joins the Bravo River. It is about 850 km long and has a wide diversity of climatic domains:
temperate in the upper part, semiarid in the middle and arid in the lower part. From a
physiographic point of view, the upper basin belongs to the mountainous zone; the middle basin
to the altiplano or central valleys; and the lower basin to the arid region.

Under natural conditions it is estimated that the Conchos River contributed 66% of the total flow
of the Rio Bravo/Grande and 14% of the total area of the Rio Bravo basin. As a result of the
remarkable differences in the flow of the Rio Grande/Grande River at its confluence with the Rio
Conchos, and even more so of its interruption between Ciudad Juarez and Ojinaga, the confluence
of both rivers is considered the point where the upper Rio Grande/Grande River -from its source in
Colorado to this confluence- and the lower Rio Grande/Grande River -from the confluence to its
mouth at the Gulf of Mexico- are delimited.

Extension del Rio Conchos

The headwaters of the Rio Florido are located on the highest peak of the Sierra Mohinoraó in
southern Chihuahua. Before reaching the Rio Conchos, the Florido fills the Presa San Gabriel, a
dam that supplies the Rio Florido irrigation district in southern Chihuahua. Downstream, the
Florido, combined with the Rio Parral, passes Pico de Aguila Dam, which distributes water to the
Camargo and Jimenez irrigation districts.

To the northwest, in the Sierra Tarahumara near the town of San Juanito, lies the headwaters of
the Sisoguichi River (this branch is often referred to as the headwaters of the Conchos River.) From
an elevation of 2200 meters in an area that receives an average annual rainfall of 600 mm, this
river descends precipitously from the Sierra to the altiplano. After receiving water from the
Nonoava and Balleza rivers, along with other minor tributaries, it flows into La Boquilla Dam, also
known as Toronto Lake.

Near the largest irrigation district, named for the nearest city of Delicias, this sub-basin joins with
the waters of the Florido to form the main bed of the Rio Conchos.

After turning toward the U.S. border to the north, the Chuviscá River joins the Conchos. The
ChuvÌscar, which flows from the Serrania de Mesa Montosa at an elevation of 2300m, provides a
portion of the water used by the City of Chihuahua, as well as generating irrigation water for the
Aldama area. There is a relatively small dam, Presa Chihuahua, used for flood control and water
storage.

The river continues its course northward where it flows through an increasingly arid valley before
filling Luis L. Leon Dam, the last major dam before reaching the mouth of the Rio Grande, whose
waters irrigate forage, alfalfa and cotton crops primarily in the lower Rio Conchos irrigation
district. Fed by a number of smaller, intermittent tributaries, the Conchos finally reaches the Rio
Grande near Ojinaga, upstream from the park.

Biodiversidad

The dominant vegetation in the middle part is pastizal amacollado abierto, with the presence of an
estrato arbóreo composed mainly of huisache (Acacia farnesiana), the most abundant grasses are
zacate borreguero (Tridens pulchellus), the navajita (Bouteloua gracilis), the banderita (Bouteloua
curtipendula) and the tempranero (Setaria macrostachya). In the lower part, the dominant
vegetation is of the matorral xerófilo and thorny scrub type, the huisache (Acacia spp. ) and the
gobernadora (Larrea tridentata), there are areas covered by Mariola (Parteniun incanum), sangre
de drago (Jatropha dioica), maguey and lechuguilla (Agave lecheguilla), ocotillo (Fouquieria
splendens) and some strips of sotol and cacti such as the creeping cactus (Opuntia rastrera). the
middle basin is dominated by Tertiary conglomerate hills and Regosol, Phaeozem and Cambisol
soils; El Morrión and El Pueblito, both in the lower part with xerophytic and thorny scrub, the first
on a piedmont area with outcrops of Cretaceous limestone and the second on conglomerate
lomerates and Quaternary soils.

Riqueza de especies nativas y endémicas por ecoregión hidrográfica de la cuenca del río
Bravo/Grande tomando en cuenta peces, moluscos y crustáceos de río y reptiles (elaborada con
base en Abell et al., 2000: 132). Nota: el punto de separación entre el alto y bajo río Bravo usado
en esta gráfica está determinado, según Abell et al. (2000), por la confluencia del río Conchos con
el río Bravo. This graph shows the richness of native and endemic species by hydrographic
ecoregion, taking into account fish, mollusks, river crustaceans and reptiles.

Estado de conservación de las ecoregiones hidrográficas del río Bravo, tomando en cuenta peces,
moluscos, crustáceos de río y reptiles (elaborada con base en Abell et al., 2000: 132.)

http://www.texascenter.org/publications/spaconchos.pdf

https://static.s123-cdn-static-d.com/uploads/690147/normal_5ae73ad24e061.pdf

https://micrositios.inecc.gob.mx/cuenca/diagnostico/33-rio-bravo.pdf