earth science

Necaxa River

Necaxa River is a earth science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Necaxa River rather than just read about it. In short: The Necaxa River (Río Necaxa) is one of the main rivers of the Mexican state of Puebla. It is a tributary of the Tecolutla River.

Key takeaways

Necaxa River belongs to earth science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Necaxa River to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Necaxa River from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

The Necaxa River (Río Necaxa) is one of the main rivers of the Mexican state of Puebla. It is a tributary of the Tecolutla River. Beginning south of Huauchinango with the name Totolapa, it runs through tall mountains and deep canyons of the Sierra Madre Oriental, forming the waterfalls known as Salto Chico y Salto Grande. Its flow is also used to generate hydroelectric power.

Geography The Necaxa River rises along the boundary of Hidalgo and Puebla states, and flows eastwards through the Sierra Madre Oriental of Puebla and Veracruz. It joins the Apulco River in Espinal, Veracruz to form the Tecolutla River, which empties into the Gulf of Mexico. Together with four other rivers, the El Tejocotal, Los Reyes, Patla, and Tenango, the Necaxa produces a total of 172 million litres of water generating electrical power not only for Puebla, but for the states of Tlaxcala, Hidalgo, Mexico, and the Federal District, in addition to many people in the center of the country. Five dams were built in the Necaxa River basin for water storage and producing hydroelectricity. Small-scale forestry takes place in the watershed.

Flora and fauna The river basin's reservoirs are habitat for waterfowl, including the great egret (Ardea alba), snowy egret (Egretta thula), little blue heron (Egretta caerulea), neotropic cormorant (Phalacrocorax olivaceus), ringed kingfisher (Megaceryle torquata), and green kingfisher (Chloroceryle americana). Endangered species found in the river and its basin include the Puebla frog (Lithobates pueblae) and the tree fern Cyathea mexicana.

Zona Protectora Forestal Vedada Cuenca Hidrográfica del Río Necaxa

On 20 October 1938, President Lázaro Cárdenas decreed the Necaxa River basin in Hidalgo and Puebla a protected forest zone (zona protectora forestal) in order to preserve the basin's forests and climate, prevent soil erosion, and stabilize the rivers' flow for production of hydroelectricity. The protected forest zone covers an area of 421.29 km2 in the municipalities of Acaxochitlán, Cuautepec de Hinojosa, Naupan, Huauchinango, Juan Galindo, Xochiltepec, Zihuateutla, Tlaola, Chiconcuautla, Jolalpan, Zacatlán, and Ahuazotepec. On 9 September 2002 the Mexican government re-designated the basin a natural resources protection area. The five reservoirs in the basin were designated a Ramsar site (wetland of international importance) on 2 February 2008. The Ramsar site covers a total of 1,541.4 ha.

Navigability This river is adapted for navigation as the generating plant opens its floodgates to the full flow of the river to permit boats to pass against the current. The Necaxa is a Class III River.

Access From Mexico City, take the Mexico-Tuxpan road and drive to Tulancingo. Then drive to Huauchinango with final destination to "El Salto" (the location of a CFE's hydroelectric plant).

References

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Necaxa River

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Necaxa River claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In earth science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Necaxa River before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Necaxa River ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Necaxa River

In research: Necaxa River appears in earth science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Necaxa River in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Necaxa River is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics IUCN Category VI, Natural resources protection areas of Mexico, Protected areas of Hidalgo (state), so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Necaxa River outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Necaxa River in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Necaxa River means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Necaxa River out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Necaxa River in simple terms?

The Necaxa River (Río Necaxa) is one of the main rivers of the Mexican state of Puebla. It is a tributary of the Tecolutla River.

Why does Necaxa River matter?

Because it connects several earth science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Necaxa River?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Necaxa River.