Río Negro (; ''Black River'') is the main river of Patagonia in terms of the size of its drainage basin, its associated agricultural produce and population living at its shores. In eastern Patagonia it is also the largest by flow rate. The river flows through the Argentine

province A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or state. The term derives from the ancient Roman ''provincia'', which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire's territorial possessions out ...

of Río Negro which is named after it. Its name comes from the literal translation of the

Mapuche The Mapuche ( (Mapuche & Spanish: )) are a group of indigenous inhabitants of south-central Chile and southwestern Argentina, including parts of Patagonia. The collective term refers to a wide-ranging ethnicity composed of various groups who s ...

term ''Curu Leuvu'', although the water is more green than black. Formerly, it was also known as "river of the willows" because of the big number of weeping willows that grow along the bank. It is 635 km in length. It originates from the junction of the Limay River and Neuquén River at the border with the

Neuquén Province Neuquén () is a province of Argentina, located in the west of the country, at the northern end of Patagonia. It borders Mendoza Province to the north, Rio Negro Province to the southeast, and Chile to the west. It also meets La Pampa Provinc ...

, and flows southeast

incised Incision may refer to: * Cutting, the separation of an object, into two or more portions, through the application of an acutely directed force * A type of open wound caused by a clean, sharp-edged object such as a knife, razor, or glass splinter * ...

through

steppe In physical geography, a steppe () is an ecoregion characterized by grassland plains without trees apart from those near rivers and lakes. Steppe biomes may include: * the montane grasslands and shrublands biome * the temperate gras ...

s to the

Atlantic Ocean The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe ...

at , near El Cóndor beach resort some downstream from Viedma, Río Negro province's capital. The river allows the Río Negro province to produce 70% of the

pear Pears are fruits produced and consumed around the world, growing on a tree and harvested in the Northern Hemisphere in late summer into October. The pear tree and shrub are a species of genus ''Pyrus'' , in the Family (biology), family Rosacea ...

s and 72% the

apple An apple is an edible fruit produced by an apple tree (''Malus domestica''). Apple trees are cultivated worldwide and are the most widely grown species in the genus '' Malus''. The tree originated in Central Asia, where its wild ancest ...

s of Argentina. The main area of orchards lie in the middle and upper course of the river. About 48% of the Southern Hemisphere's pears are produced in Río Negro. Besides irrigation, the river is also source of hydroelectricity with small dams on its course. The river's lower 400 km are naviglable. In 1604 the inland area of the river was reached by Spanish explorers departing from

Buenos Aires Buenos Aires ( or ; ), officially the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires ( es, link=no, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires), is the capital and primate city of Argentina. The city is located on the western shore of the Río de la Plata, on South ...

in search of the mythical

City of the Caesars The City of the Caesars (Spanish Ciudad de los Césares), also variously known as ''City of Patagonia'', ''the Wandering City'', ''Trapalanda'' or ''Trapananda'', ''Lin Lin'' or ''Elelín'', is a mythical city of South America. It was supposedly ...

. The river served briefly as a natural demarcation between "civilization" and the indigenous territories in the late 1870s and early 1880s during the Conquest of the Desert. In the 1900s Welsh settlers from Chubut were granted land in

Choele Choel Choele Choel is the capital of the department of Avellaneda in the Argentine province of Río Negro, and the most important settlement within the ''Valle Medio'' ("Middle Valley") agricultural area of the Río Negro River in Patagonia. Overview ...

Valleys

The river is divided into three parts: The Alto Valle (High Valley) near the beginning of the river, Valle Medio (Medium Valley) near

, and Valle Inferior (Lower Valley) near its end. The river crosses the

plains of the province through a forest of around in the ''Alto Valle'', and as wide as towards the ''Valle Inferior''. In the dry plain it is possible to find

seashell A seashell or sea shell, also known simply as a shell, is a hard, protective outer layer usually created by an animal or organism that lives in the sea. The shell is part of the body of the animal. Empty seashells are often found washe ...

s and pebble.

Alto Valle

The main cities in Alto Valle are: General Roca, Cipolletti, Cinco Saltos, followed by many others on the National Route #22. Together with

San Carlos de Bariloche San Carlos de Bariloche, usually known as Bariloche (), is a city in the province of Río Negro, Argentina, situated in the foothills of the Andes on the southern shores of Nahuel Huapi Lake. It is located within the Nahuel Huapi National Park ...

, this is the most prosperous part of the province. Most pear and apple plantations are at the ''Alto Valle'', but many also at the ''Valle Medio''.

Valle Medio

Next to Choele Choel is the Choele Choel Island, in which are Lamarque, Luis Beltrán and Pomona, all of them on National Route #250. Besides apple and pear cultivation, tomato is also an important crop, being Lamarque the ''National Capital of the Tomato''. Outside the valley, on the more arid lands around town such as

Chimpay Chimpay is a municipality in Río Negro Province in Argentina. It lies on the National Route 22 in the Mid Valley of the Río Negro. Populated by the Tehuelche and the Mapuche before the Conquest of the Desert, ''lonco'' Manuel Namuncurá esta ...

and ''Darwin'', some cattle is also raised.

Valle Inferior

Although the term is not as used term as the previous two, ''Valle Inferior'' refers to Viedma and all the cities on the province's coast. Fruit is also produced but is not a primary activity.

Onion An onion (''Allium cepa'' L., from Latin ''cepa'' meaning "onion"), also known as the bulb onion or common onion, is a vegetable that is the most widely cultivated species of the genus '' Allium''. The shallot is a botanical variety of the on ...

is cultivated as well as some cereals.

Alfalfa Alfalfa () (''Medicago sativa''), also called lucerne, is a perennial flowering plant in the legume family Fabaceae. It is cultivated as an important forage crop in many countries around the world. It is used for grazing, hay, and silage, as ...

and

maize Maize ( ; ''Zea mays'' subsp. ''mays'', from es, maíz after tnq, mahiz), also known as corn (North American English, North American and Australian English), is a cereal grain first domesticated by indigenous peoples of Mexico, indigenous ...

is cultivated both for human consumption and for feeding

cattle Cattle (''Bos taurus'') are large, domesticated, cloven-hooved, herbivores. They are a prominent modern member of the subfamily Bovinae and the most widespread species of the genus '' Bos''. Adult females are referred to as cows and adult ...

, which is the most important activity.

Name

In spite of its name of ''Negro'' ("black") the colour is more greenish than black. Nevertheless, the name is the literal translation of its aboriginal

name of ''Curú Leuvú''. The river was also known by the name of ''Río de los Sauces'' ("River of Willows") for the abundant weeping

willow Willows, also called sallows and osiers, from the genus ''Salix'', comprise around 400 speciesMabberley, D.J. 1997. The Plant Book, Cambridge University Press #2: Cambridge. of typically deciduous trees and shrubs, found primarily on moist so ...

s along its lower course.

Regatta

The ''Regata del Río Negro'' (Black River Regatta), run in this river, is the longest kayak boat-race in the world with its . The competition is divided in six stages and last 8 days (with two days for resting). The categories are *K1 men Senior *K2 men Senior *K2 men Junior (17 to 20 years) *K2 women Senior *K1 men Maxi (older than 36) *K2 men Maxi *Touring (open, non professional recreative category)

References

*Colbert E. Cushing, Kenneth W. Cummins, G. Wayne Minshall: ''River and Stream Ecosystems of the World: With a New Introduction''. University of California Press 2006, , S. 280ff
restricted online version (Google Books)
;Attribution *

External links

(English)
Valle Medio
(Spanish)

(Spanish)
Regatta's official site
(English & Spanish) {{DEFAULTSORT:Negro, Rio Rivers of Río Negro Province Rivers of Buenos Aires Province Rivers of Argentina