{{Short description|River of Puerto Rico}} {{Use dmy dates|date=May 2018}} {{Infobox river | name = Río Matilde | image = 200px | image_size = 200px | image_caption = Rio Matilde, looking south from PR-2, Barrio Canas, Ponce, PR | source1_location = Convergence of Rio Pastillo and Rio Canas, Barrio Canas, Ponce, Puerto Rico<ref name="Cabrera Salcedo">Sunny A. Cabrera Salcedo. ''Hacia un Estudio Integral de la Toponimia del Municipio de Ponce, Puerto Rico.'' Ph. D. dissertation. May 1999. University of Massachusetts Amherst. Graduate School. Department of Spanish and Portuguese. Page 14.</ref> | source1_coordinates = {{Coord|18.1319046|-66.5798949|region:US-PR_type:river_source:gnis|display=inline,title|notes=<ref>{{Gnis|1612563|Río Matilde}}</ref>}} | mouth_location = Caribbean Sea | progression = Canas Urbano<br>Playa | subdivision_type1 = Commonwealth | subdivision_name1 = Puerto Rico | subdivision_type2 = Municipality | subdivision_name2 = Ponce | length_km = 1.7|length_ref=<ref name="gis">{{cite web|url=http://www.gis.otg.gobierno.pr/maptest|title=Maptest|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100218155723/http://www.gis.otg.gobierno.pr/maptest |date=2010-02-18|archive-date=2010-02-18|publisher=Government of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico|work=General Purpose Population Data, Census 2000|access-date=24 October 2011|url-status=dead}}</ref> | source1_elevation = {{convert|15|ft|m|sp=us}}<ref name="gis" /> | mouth_elevation = {{convert|0|ft|m|sp=us}} | discharge1_avg = | basin_size = | river_system = | tributaries_left = Río Pastillo | tributaries_right = Rio Canas }} thumb|right|261px|Map showing the location of Río Matilde among the other rivers in the municipality. The area in pink represents the urban zone of the city

'''Río Matilde''' is a short river in the municipality of Ponce, Puerto Rico. It forms from the confluence of Rio Pastillo and Rio Canas.<ref name="Cabrera Salcedo" /> Río Matilde is one of the 14 rivers in the municipality and, forming at an altitude of just {{convert|15|ft|m|sp=us}}, it forms at an altitude lower than any other river in the municipality.

==Origin== The name Río Matilde has sometimes been used to refer to a segment of Río Pastillo,<ref>[http://www.salonhogar.com/est_soc/pr/pueblos/ponce/index.htm ''Estudios Sociales: Hidrografia, Ponce, Puerto Rico.''] Projecto Salon Hogar. Retrieved August 8, 2009.</ref>{{#tag:Ref|Rio Matilde has sometimes been erroneously called Río Pastillo. In particular a segment of that river (Río Pastillo) that flows into Río Matilde has been called Río Matilde. For example [http://www.gobierno.pr/NR/rdonlyres/5B71F1F9-B0CB-4C2C-B814-BBAFEBA3FFDA/0/Vol3001AFlorayFaunaPags128.pdf HERE] (''Informe Ecologico de Flora y Fauna, Proyecto Gasoducto del Sur: Peñuelas, Ponce, Juana Díaz, Santa Isabel, Salinas.'' For: Proyecto Gasoducto del Sur - Peñuelas, Ponce, Juana Díaz, Santa Isabel, Salinas. By: ENSR (Piscatway, NJ) - AEE (Autoridad de Energia Electrica). Page 19. Retrieved 26 November 2013.) states "Río Matilde: ... Hacia el Norte desde su intersección con la Quebrada del Agua se le conoce como Río Pastillo." Translated and paraphased: North of its intersection with Quebrada del Agua creek, Rio Matilde is known as Río Pastillo.|group=note}} but Río Matilde actually results from the confluence of Río Pastillo and Río Canas.<ref name="geonames">[https://geonames.usgs.gov/pls/gnispublic/f?p=154:2:5069111315758891::NO:RP:: ''Rio Matilde.''] U.S. Geological Survey. Department of the Interior. Retrieved 9 October 2011.</ref> Río Pastillo joins from its easterly run in the western section of the municipality of Ponce, while Río Canas joins from its southerly run in the northwestern area of the municipality of Ponce, both merging to form Río Matilde at their confluence in Barrio Canas just west of Urbanizacion Rio Canas and north of PR-2 in Ponce.

==Features== At {{convert|1.7|km|mi|sp=us}} long, Río Matilde is the shortest river in the municipality of Ponce. The river is approximately one mile long and empties into the Caribbean Sea at 17°58'55"N, 66°38'16"W in the area of Los Meros in Barrio Playa.<ref name="geonames" /><ref>[http://www.visitaaponce.com/recursos.aspx ''Recursos Naturales.''] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110611031141/http://www.visitaaponce.com/recursos.aspx |date=2011-06-11 }} Government of the Autonomous Municipality of Ponce. Retrieved 9 October 2011.</ref>

==Canalization== The Government of Puerto Rico has plans to canalize this river.<ref>''Ponce en Marcha: Obras que si se ven.'' Government of Puerto Rico. El Sur a la Vista. Ponce, Puerto Rico. 2 November 2011. Page 56.</ref>

==Course== The following table summarizes the course of Rio Matilde in terms of roads crossed. Roads are listed as the river flows from its origin in the confluence of Rio Pastillo and Rio Canas, located in Barrio Canas, east of the city of Ponce, to its emptying into the Caribbean Sea in Barrio Playa in the south (N/A = Data not available):

{| class="wikitable sortable" !No.|| Barrio || Road|| Road's<br />km marker || NBI ID<ref>[https://bridgereports.com/pr/ponce/ ''National Bridge Inventory Data: Puerto Rico, Ponce.''] James Baughn. BridgeReports.com 2018. Accessed 26 November 2018.</ref>|| Bridge name <br/><small>(if any)</small> || Direction <br/><small>(of bridge traffic)</small>|| Coordinates || Notes |- |1||Canas Urbano|| PR-2 || 225.5 || 8352 || Unnamed || Westbound || {{coord|18|59|44.8434|N|66|38|5.856|W|type:landmark}} || |- |2||Canas Urbano|| PR-2 || 225.5 || 8752 || Unnamed || Eastbound || {{coord|18|59|44.34|N|66|38|5.856|W|type:landmark}} || |- |3||Playa || PR-52 || 107.8 || 24172|| Unnamed|| Westbound || {{coord|17|59|31.128|N|66|38|12.444|W|type:landmark}} || |- |4||Playa || PR-52 || 107.8 || 24162 || Unnamed|| Eastbound || {{coord|17|59|30.516|N|66|38|12.552|W|type:landmark}} || |- |-style="background: #DDDDDD;" class="sortbottom" |&nbsp;|| || || || || || || || |- bgcolor=#ffffff class="sortbottom" |}

==See also== * List of rivers of Puerto Rico * List of rivers of Ponce

==Notes== {{Reflist|group=note}}

==References== {{Reflist}}

==External links== * [https://pubs.er.usgs.gov/publication/hu58 USGS Hydrologic Unit Map – Caribbean Region (1974)]

{{DEFAULTSORT:Matilde, Rio}} Category:Rivers of Puerto Rico Category:Rivers of Ponce, Puerto Rico