Abstract

SANTIAGO CHARCHABAL, Yaime; PRIEGO SANTANDER, Angel G.  and  FLORES DOMINGUEZ, Ángel David. Geoecological Heterogeneity Assessment of the San Mateo Río Hondo Municipality, Oaxaca, Mexico, at a 1:50 000 scale. Rev. Geog. Amer. Central [online]. 2025, n.75, pp.151-182.  Epub June 20, 2025. ISSN 2215-2563.  http://dx.doi.org/10.15359/rgac.75-2.6.

The importance of geoecological heterogeneity analyses to support ecotourism assessments and ecosystem conservation is due to its high correlation with biodiversity; however, the state of Oaxaca in Mexico lacks geoecological inventories and assessments of its geographical diversity, despite being a region with notable biological richness. The purpose of the research was to evaluate the heterogeneity of the physical-geographic landscapes of the San Mateo Río Hondo municipality in Oaxaca. Two complexity indices were calculated, one of richness and three of diversity based on the physical-geographic landscape units of the municipality at a scale of 1:50 000. The results show a close statistical and spatial relationship between diversity and complexity. The very high and high correlation categories comprise 95.7 % and are represented by complexes of slopes and ravines in mountains of tectonic-structural genesis. A perfect spatial relationship regarding richness and maximum diversity was shown, dominated by very high class units, which cover close to 80 % of the total area. The above denotes the high potential of the San Mateo Río Hondo municipality for the conservation of geodiversity and ecological tourism.

Keywords : heterogeneity; landscapes; geoecology; diversity; complexity.

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