Compare the expanse of the Amazon Basin with the U.S. state of Texas

Contunico © ZDF Studios GmbH, Mainz

Learn about the importance of gold to the Incas.

Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.

Formation of a waterfall in Iceland.

Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.

Learn how the Andes Mountains block warm moist air, causing persistent heavy rainfall on their eastern slopes that feeds the Amazon River.

Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.

Gold and other mineral deposits in parts of the Amazon River basin have drawn both corporate and individual mining efforts.

© MinuteEarth (A Britannica Publishing Partner)

The formation of meanders in straight rivers and streams is largely dependent on disturbances. At the site of the disturbance, such as a fallen log or a collapsing animal burrow, the path of the stream and the velocity of the current change, altering the overall behaviour of the watercourse and resulting in the development of meanders.

Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.

Learn about the origins of the Amazon River by following streams from the Andes Mountains to the Amazon basin.

Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.

A Witoto family carries on the traditional culture that was once a way of life for more than 30 Witoto tribes of the western Amazon basin.

Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.

Learn about wildlife of the Amazon Rainforest, including macaws, toucans, tyrant flycatchers, capybaras, tapirs, sloths, squirrel monkeys, red howler monkeys, jaguars, caimans, anacondas, tarantulas, leaf-cutter ants, scarlet ibis, and black skimmers.