Casiquiare canal
| Casiquiare canal | |
|---|---|
Map of the Cassiquiare canal based on Alexander von Humboldt, 1799 observations | |
Location of the Casiquiare (highlighted in purple) within the Amazon Basin | |
| Location | |
| Country | Venezuela |
| Physical characteristics | |
| Source | Orinoco River |
| • coordinates | 3°8′18″N 65°52′49″W / 3.13833°N 65.88028°W |
| • elevation | 110 m (360 ft) |
| Mouth | Rio Negro |
• coordinates | 2°0′5″N 67°5′54″W / 2.00139°N 67.09833°W |
• elevation | 79 m (259 ft) |
| Length | 340 km (210 mi) |
| Basin size | 42,478 km2 (16,401 mi2) |
| Discharge | |
| • location | Amazonas, Venezuela (near mouth) |
| • average | 2,574.3 m3/s (90,910 cu ft/s) |
| Basin features | |
| Tributaries | |
| • right | Siapa, Yatua |
The Casiquiare river or canal (Spanish pronunciation: [kasiˈkjaɾe]) is a natural distributary of the upper Orinoco flowing southward into the Rio Negro in Venezuela. As such, it forms a unique natural canal between the Orinoco and Amazon river systems. It is the world's largest river of the kind that links two major river systems, a so-called bifurcation. The area forms a water divide, more dramatically at regional flood stage.