Río de la Plata Basin
Río de la Plata Basin
Platine Region | |
|---|---|
Aerial view of the Paraná Delta within the Río de la Plata basin, north of Buenos Aires | |
Map of the Río de la Plata basin in South America, with major cities and rivers marked | |
| Coordinates: 32°15′S 59°30′W / 32.250°S 59.500°W | |
| Location | South America |
| Area | |
| • Total | 3,170,000 square kilometres (1,220,000 sq mi) |
| Major rivers | Río de la Plata, Paraná River, Uruguay River, Paraguay River |
The Río de la Plata basin (Spanish: Cuenca del Plata, Portuguese: Bacia do Prata), more often called the River Plate basin in scholarly writings, sometimes called the Platine basin or Platine region, is the 3,170,000-square-kilometre (1,220,000 sq mi) hydrographical area in South America that drains to the Río de la Plata. It includes areas of southeastern Bolivia, southern and central Brazil, the entire country of Paraguay, most of Uruguay, and northern Argentina. Making up about one fourth of the continent's surface, it is the second largest drainage basin in South America (after the Amazon basin) and one of the largest in the world.
The main rivers of the La Plata basin are the Paraná River, the Paraguay River (the Paraná's main tributary), and the Uruguay River.