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Mainstem Rivers of the World based on MERIT hydrography and Natural Earth names

Published by U.S. Geological Survey | Department of the Interior | Metadata Last Checked: July 16, 2025 | Last Modified: 20220622
Mainstem rivers are the backbone of a connected network of hydrologic units that cover the landscape. A mainstem connects a headwater source area to an outlet. This data release identifies the same mainstem paths in hydrographic datasets for the world based on the MERIT hydrography and the Natural Earth river names. Made with Natural Earth. Free vector and raster map data @ naturalearthdata.com. See "Blodgett et al., 2021, Mainstems: A logical data model implementing mainstem and drainage basin feature types based on WaterML2 Part 3: HY Features concepts https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envsoft.2020.104927" for mainstems data model details.

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