Some amazing facts about Amazon river

Startling facts about the Amazon river probably you don’t know

The Amazon river is unquestionably one of the world’s most significant water bodies. Apart from being the world’s largest, there are many other facts about the massive water body that are both fascinating as well as astonishing. Here are some incredible facts about the Amazon river probably you don’t know.

1. World’s plushest tropical forest
The Amazon rainforest inhabits the drainage basin of the Amazon river, the reason why this massive rainforest is the world’s richest in terms of biodiversity. As per the records, this rainforest is home to millions of insect species, 2,000 mammals and birds and 40,000 plant species along with some 390 billion individual trees.

2. There is no bridge
It is difficult to realize that there is no bridge on the mighty river and it is only a river. Lush green forests surrounding it and interminable views of the sky to grace your views. For example, ten million people live on the banks of this rivers can get past this river only via boat. Lack of infrastructure has helped the region to retain its natural appeal. The change of seasons there happens in due time for this reason.

3. Initiation of the river
The river has been in debate regarding its initiation and length for a long time. It is intricate that there are various sources to strengthen their records and arguing that it originated from the Mismi Peak in the Andes of Peru and even Maranon River to the Ucayali River. With different sources suggesting its claim of origin, it is worth nothing that they are all located in Peru.

4. World’s largest river by capacity of water
There have been debates regarding the world’s longest river for a long time Between The Amazon and the Nile : however, the Amazon has no competition when it comes its size or its capacity. It is indisputably world’s largest river with an average discharge volume of 2,09,000 cubic meter per second. This vast freshwater discharge of the Amazon river travels straight into the Atlantic Ocean which helps in attenuating the sea’s salinity for an area of around 25,00000 square kilometer.

5. World’s second longest river
When the Nile River often gets away with the title world’s longest river with a length of 6,695 kilometer, the Amazon often disputes with that claim. There have been many expeditions led by famous explorers who set of to measure its length and many found that its total length is greater than that of the Nile river. Moreover, there are others who have claimed that the distance of the Amazon river is lesser than that of Nile, which further leads to more confusion and still open for future debates.

6. Crosses over several countries
The Amazon river crosses through Colombia, Brazil, Venezuela and Peru, with Brazil holding the largest portion by far. Also the areas of Amazon River’s watershed receives freshwater from even more countries. Moreover, rainfall in Colombia, Bolivia, Peru, Ecuador and Venezuela supplies the Amazon with much of its freshwater.

7. It once flowed in opposite direction
The mighty river, at this moment, flows into the Atlantic Ocean which was always not the case. As per the records, several million years ago, the river used to flow westward, which changed its course when a tilt in the earth caused the river’s reversed flow eastward. If records are go to by, this change occurred due to the result of erosion along with a series of geological incidents.

Saifur Rahman Tuheen : freelance journalist and feature writer

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