Iguazu River
| Iguazú | |
| Iguaçu, Iguazu rio, Iguassu | |
 The river directly above Iguazu Falls
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|
| Countries | Brazil, Argentina |
|---|---|
| Part of | Paraná River basin |
| Tributaries | |
| - left | Rio Negro (Iguazu), Rio Xopim |
| - right | Rio de Areia |
| Cities | Curitiba, Campo Largo, Paraná, Foz do Iguaçu |
| Landmark | Iguazu Falls |
| Source | Serra do Mar |
| - location | Near Curitiba, Paraná, Brazil |
| - elevation | 1,200 m (3,937 ft) |
| - coordinates | 25°23′30″S 49°00′11″W / 25.39167°S 49.00306°W |
| Mouth | Paraná River |
| - location | Foz do Iguaçu, Misiones Province and Paraná, border between Argentina and Brazil |
| - elevation | 110 m (361 ft) |
| - coordinates | 25°35′33″S 54°35′30″W / 25.59250°S 54.59167°WCoordinates: 25°35′33″S 54°35′30″W / 25.59250°S 54.59167°W |
| Length | 1,320 km (820 mi), East-west |
| Basin | 62,000 km2 (23,938 sq mi) |
| Discharge | for Iguazu Falls |
| - average | 1,746 m3/s (61,659 cu ft/s) |
| - max | 12,799 m3/s (451,992 cu ft/s) |
| - min | 200 m3/s (7,063 cu ft/s) |
The Iguazu River (Portuguese: Rio Iguaçu[ˈʁi.u iɡwaˈsu], Spanish: Río Iguazú [ˈri.o iɣwaˈsu]; also called Rio Iguassu) is a river in Brazil and Argentina. It is an important tributary of the Paraná River. The Iguazu River is 1,320 kilometres (820 mi) long, with a drainage basin of 62,000 square kilometres (24,000 sq mi).
The Iguazu originates in the Serra da Baitaca State Park, created in 2002, in the Serra do Mar coastal mountains of the Brazilian state of Paraná. For 1,205 kilometres (749 mi), to its confluence with the San Antonio River, the Iguazu flows west through Paraná State, Brazil. Downriver from the confluence the Iguazu River forms the boundary between Brazil and Argentina's Misiones Province. Continuing west, the river drops off a plateau, forming Iguazu Falls. The falls are within national parks in both Brazil, Iguaçu National Park, and Argentina, Iguazú National Park. It empties into the Paraná River at the point where the borders of Argentina, Brazil, and Paraguay join, an area known as the Triple Frontier.
About 100 fish species are native to the Iguazu River and several undescribed species are known. Most fish species in the river are catfish, characiforms and cichlids. About 70% are endemic, which to a large extent is linked to the falls, serving both as a home for rheophilic species and isolating species above and below. This also means that, with the exception of the threatened Steindachneridion melanodermatum in the lower part, large migratory fish known from much of the Paraná River Basin are naturally absent from Iguazu. Almost 30 introduced species are found in the river where about one-third originate from other continents (such as carp, largemouth bass, tilapia and African sharptooth catfish) and the remaining from elsewhere in South America (such as dorado, Cichla kelberi, pacu, Brycon hilarii, Prochilodus lineatus and Odontesthes bonariensis).
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