The River
The River
When precipitation reaches the ground, some of it infiltrates (sinks into the soil), some evaporates back to the atmosphere, and some flows over the land as runoff. During a storm, tiny rivulets run down into arroyos or join to form creeks and streams, which combine to eventually form a river. Water may also enter the river from springs and by groundwater seeping in through the banks and river bed.
Major river basins in New Mexico include the Rio Grande, the Pecos, the Canadian, and the Colorado (which includes the San Juan, Little Colorado, and Gila Rivers).
Rivers are the lifeblood of New Mexico. Like veins and arteries in a body, river corridors connect and nourish the land and its residents - flood waters to floodplains, food resources to resident or migrant wildlife species, upstream to downstream water users, surface water to groundwater. The state of these connections defines the health of a river.
