Physical map of the Province of Corrientes, Argentina
Physical map of the Province of Corrientes, Argentina.
The province of Corrientes limits the north and the west with the Paraná River, which separates it from Paraguay and the Provinces of Chaco and Santa Fe; its eastern border is marked by the Uruguay River, which separates it from Brazil and Uruguay, where a triple border is formed between the cities of Monte Caseros (Argentina), Bella Unión, (city of the department of Artigas, Uruguay) and Barra do Quarai (Rio Grande del Sur); the Guayquiraró and Mocoretá rivers and the Basualdo and Tunas streams mark their southern border with the province of Entre Ríos. To the northeast, the Itaembé and Chimiray streams, together with a stretch of "dry limit" of 30 km, separate it from the Province of Misiones.
The province of Corrientes forms part of the Argentine Mesopotamia and more broadly of the region called Litoral. It is a flat province, with the exception of the place known as Tres Cerros (near the town of La Cruz), east of the province, where there are some small elevations of which the Nazarene hill stands out, with 179 meters above sea level. However, its highest point is northeast (27°47′16.3999″S 55°49′52.2083″W), on the border with the province of Misiones and near the town of San Carlos, with an altitude of 229. Towards the west there is a series of steps whose heights decrease until reaching the Paraná River, towards the south, bordering with Entre Ríos a low plateau is located: that of the Payubré, covered by dense forests until the end of the 20th century.
The territory of Corrientes is characterized by a marked asymmetry between the eastern and western sectors; the domain of estuaries and lagoons stands out for not integrating an organized hydrographic system.
The Iberá Wetlands area, which covers a quarter of the provincial surface, is an extensive depression of volcanic spill soils, later covered by sediments of fluvial and wind origin. The exact area occupied by the bathes varies according to the height of the rivers in the region, with which it is connected underground; although the southern margin of the area is clearly defined by the natural limit of the geology of Entre Ríos -an area of low hills that occupies the southern half of the province-, its northeast and northwest borders have no solution of continuity with the rest of the landscape.
The most dynamic area is delimited by the Iberá Wetlands and characterized by two fundamental elements: the settlement of the capital in a privileged position, in a non-flooding site where two waterways converge, the Paraguay River and the Paraná, and the presence of small hills that make possible the intensive agriculture of citrus fruits, vegetables, tobacco, corn, etc.
The geological origin of the area is not clear. The most convincing hypotheses suggest that the Iberá basin would be constituted by the old bed of the Paraná river, from which it was diverted once the erosion made it flow through the rocky bank of the Yacyretá-Apipé falls feasable. This theory is supported by the alluvial origin of the soil, composed of layers of sand and silt on a waterproof clay bottom that prevents the direct drainage of water. The circulation of the same occurs through the Corriente and Miriñay rivers, towards the Paraná and Uruguay basins respectively. Frequent rains, especially during spring and autumn, replenish the level of estuaries, which has not shown any tendency to change in recent years.
The province of Corrientes limits the north and the west with the Paraná River, which separates it from Paraguay and the Provinces of Chaco and Santa Fe; its eastern border is marked by the Uruguay River, which separates it from Brazil and Uruguay, where a triple border is formed between the cities of Monte Caseros (Argentina), Bella Unión, (city of the department of Artigas, Uruguay) and Barra do Quarai (Rio Grande del Sur); the Guayquiraró and Mocoretá rivers and the Basualdo and Tunas streams mark their southern border with the province of Entre Ríos. To the northeast, the Itaembé and Chimiray streams, together with a stretch of "dry limit" of 30 km, separate it from the Province of Misiones.
The province of Corrientes forms part of the Argentine Mesopotamia and more broadly of the region called Litoral. It is a flat province, with the exception of the place known as Tres Cerros (near the town of La Cruz), east of the province, where there are some small elevations of which the Nazarene hill stands out, with 179 meters above sea level. However, its highest point is northeast (27°47′16.3999″S 55°49′52.2083″W), on the border with the province of Misiones and near the town of San Carlos, with an altitude of 229. Towards the west there is a series of steps whose heights decrease until reaching the Paraná River, towards the south, bordering with Entre Ríos a low plateau is located: that of the Payubré, covered by dense forests until the end of the 20th century.
The territory of Corrientes is characterized by a marked asymmetry between the eastern and western sectors; the domain of estuaries and lagoons stands out for not integrating an organized hydrographic system.
The Iberá Wetlands area, which covers a quarter of the provincial surface, is an extensive depression of volcanic spill soils, later covered by sediments of fluvial and wind origin. The exact area occupied by the bathes varies according to the height of the rivers in the region, with which it is connected underground; although the southern margin of the area is clearly defined by the natural limit of the geology of Entre Ríos -an area of low hills that occupies the southern half of the province-, its northeast and northwest borders have no solution of continuity with the rest of the landscape.
The most dynamic area is delimited by the Iberá Wetlands and characterized by two fundamental elements: the settlement of the capital in a privileged position, in a non-flooding site where two waterways converge, the Paraguay River and the Paraná, and the presence of small hills that make possible the intensive agriculture of citrus fruits, vegetables, tobacco, corn, etc.
The geological origin of the area is not clear. The most convincing hypotheses suggest that the Iberá basin would be constituted by the old bed of the Paraná river, from which it was diverted once the erosion made it flow through the rocky bank of the Yacyretá-Apipé falls feasable. This theory is supported by the alluvial origin of the soil, composed of layers of sand and silt on a waterproof clay bottom that prevents the direct drainage of water. The circulation of the same occurs through the Corriente and Miriñay rivers, towards the Paraná and Uruguay basins respectively. Frequent rains, especially during spring and autumn, replenish the level of estuaries, which has not shown any tendency to change in recent years.
