How long is the Rio Grande?
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the Rio Grande is 1,885 miles! it starts in the southwestern area of Colorado, and ends in the Gulf of Mexico!
it is the 4th longest river system in the U.S.A! Just in Texas, the Rio Grande drains about 40,000 square miles into the gulf.
it is the 4th longest river system in the U.S.A! Just in Texas, the Rio Grande drains about 40,000 square miles into the gulf.
Animals in the Rio Grande
There are many animals and fish in the Rio Grande.
Shovelnose Sturgon
I grow to three feet (1 meter) long with a slender body and have rows of bony plates on my back. My nose looks like a shovel. When I eat I stick my extendible mouth out into the bottom of the river. When I pull my mouth back in, I eat the larva of aquatic insects. I live most of my life in the Gulf of Mexico. I usually swim alone in the large channels of the Rio Grande.
I have wings but I am not a bird. My body is covered with brown fur. I use echolocation (sonar) to catch flying insects like mosquitoes. I skim over streams and ponds at night. During the day I sleep in hollow trees or under bark. When we have our babies, I gather with lots of my friends in sheltered areas like caves or cavities of trees.
As an adult, I have a dark brown body with a white head and tail. My massive beak is yellow and I have bare yellow legs. When I am young, my whole body is mostly dark brown with blotchy white underneath. As an adult female my wingspan can reach 8 feet (2.4 meters) while as an adult male it is 6 feet (1.8 meters). My wintering grounds include New Mexico, both along the Middle Rio Grande Valley and the upper reaches of the Rio Grande watershed.
I have a bushy tail, four slender legs, pointed ears that stand up and a sandy brown fur coat. In the mornings and evenings I yip and howl with my family. I eat whatever I can find, including mice, jackrabbits, ducks and other birds, berries and insects. I roam across many miles of the bosque and surrounding fields. Once in a while, I catch a roadrunner. I make a den in a sheltered place like an old animal burrow or a hollow log. My pups stay there for two to three weeks. After six to nine months they may go off on their own, or they may stay with me and my mate until the next year.
My webbed toes make me a great swimmer but I can also fly to find other places with water. My tail sticks up out of the water when I dip my head below the surface to get food. I have ridges along my bill that let me strain aquatic plants, grass and small insects from the water. I build my nest on the shore.
I am a raptor, which means I have sharp talons (claws) for catching prey and a hooked beak to tear meat. I have a long tail with dark and light brown bands. I hunt during the day. When I am hungry, I wait on a branch for a small bird to fly by. Then I dash after it, using my binocular vision to skillfully fly around the trees.
My tail, ears and fur are very short. My eyes are small. My front legs are very strong. The claws on my front feet are very long. All of these adaptations help me dig and live underground. I burrow in deep, sandy soil where the trees aren’t too close together. I push the soil that I dig out of my tunnels up to the surface and leave it in piles on the ground. My cheeks have fur-lined pockets to carry my food.
The Rio Grande Compact
Signed in 1938, with Colorado, New Mexico, and Texas as parties and approved by Congress in 1939, the Rio Grande Compact apportions the waters of the Rio Grande above Ft. Quitman, Texas, among the three states. It provides for administration by a commission consisting of the state engineers of Colorado and New Mexico, a commissioner appointed by the Governor of Texas, and a representative of the United States. The commission meets annually in March.
The Rio Grande Compact establishes water delivery obligations and depletion entitlements for Colorado and New Mexico. Given the variable climate, it provides for debits and credits to be carried over from year to year until extinguished under provisions of the compact. Accrued credits or debits are an important element of compact accounting. The engineer advisors to the compact commissioners meet prior to the Rio Grande Compact Commission to determine scheduled and actual delivery of water under the compact. The U.S. Geological Survey acts as Secretary to the compact commission under an annual cooperative agreement, prepares monthly and annual reports, and maintains the official compact commission files.
The Rio Grande Compact establishes water delivery obligations and depletion entitlements for Colorado and New Mexico. Given the variable climate, it provides for debits and credits to be carried over from year to year until extinguished under provisions of the compact. Accrued credits or debits are an important element of compact accounting. The engineer advisors to the compact commissioners meet prior to the Rio Grande Compact Commission to determine scheduled and actual delivery of water under the compact. The U.S. Geological Survey acts as Secretary to the compact commission under an annual cooperative agreement, prepares monthly and annual reports, and maintains the official compact commission files.