Editing Rio Grande (section)

==Geography==
The Rio Grande rises in the western part of [[Rio Grande National Forest]], in the U.S. state of [[Colorado]], and is formed by the joining of several streams at the base of [[Canby Mountain]], in the [[San Juan Mountains]], due east of the [[Continental Divide of the Americas]]. From the Continental Divide, the Rio Grande flows through the [[San Luis Valley]], then south into [[New Mexico]], and passes through the [[Rio Grande Gorge]], near Taos, then toward [[Española, New Mexico|Española]], afterwards collecting additional waters from the [[Colorado River]] basin via the [[San Juan-Chama Diversion Project]] and from the [[Rio Chama]]. The Rio Grande then continues southwards, irrigating the farmlands in the [[Middle Rio Grande Valley]] through the [[desert]] cities of [[Albuquerque, New Mexico|Albuquerque]] and [[Las Cruces, New Mexico|Las Cruces]] in New Mexico, to [[El Paso, Texas]] and [[Ciudad Juárez, Chihuahua]], in Mexico. In the [[Albuquerque metropolitan area]], the Rio Grande flows by historic [[Pueblo]] villages, such as [[Sandia Pueblo]] and [[Isleta Pueblo]]. South of El Paso, the Rio Grande is the national border between the U.S. and Mexico.

[[File:Rio Grande-2.jpg|thumb|left|A riverine islet in the Rio Grande, seen from North Valley, New Mexico.]]

The segment of the river that forms the international border ranges from {{convert|889|to|1,248|mi|km}}, depending on how the river is measured.<ref name=tsha/> The [[Rio Conchos]] is a major tributary of the Rio Grande, with its confluence 310&nbsp;km. (193 straight air miles) southeast of El Paso near [[Ojinaga]], in [[Chihuahua (state)|Chihuahua]], Mexico. Downstream, other tributaries include the [[Pecos River]] and [[Devils River (Texas)|Devils River]], both entering the Rio Grande from the north in the vicinity of [[Amistad Reservoir]] in Texas, and the [[Rio Salado (Mexico)|Rio Salado]] and [[San Juan River (Tamaulipas)|Rio San Juan]] both entering from the south with confluences in [[Tamaulipas]], Mexico.

The Rio Grande rises in high mountains and flows for much of its length at high elevation; the valley floor at Albuquerque is {{convert|5312|ft|m|0}}, and El Paso {{convert|3762|ft|m|0}} above [[sea level]]. In New Mexico, the river flows through the [[Rio Grande rift]] from one [[sediment]]-filled basin to another, cutting [[canyon]]s between the basins and supporting a fragile [[bosque]] ecosystem on its [[flood plain]]. From Albuquerque southward, the river flows through desert. Although irrigated agriculture exists throughout most of its stretch, it is particularly extensive in the [[subtropical]] [[Lower Rio Grande Valley]]. The river ends in a small, sandy [[river delta|delta]] at the Gulf of Mexico. During portions of 2001 and 2002, the mouth of the Rio Grande was blocked by a sandbar. In the fall of 2003, the sandbar was cleared by high river flows around {{convert|7063|cuft/s|m3/s|0}}.<ref name="ibwc"/>

The Rio Grande flows through a valley with diverse animal and plants communities. Conservation of the river and the valley is a recurring theme for people who live in the region.<ref>{{Cite web |last = Sandy |first = John H. |title = Book Review of Mountain Islands and Desert Seas: A Natural History of the U.S. Mexican Borderlands |date = January 4, 1981 |url = https://ir.ua.edu/handle/123456789/10030 |access-date = June 24, 2023 }}</ref>