| 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)[1] |
| Basin size | 42,478 km2 (16,401 sq mi)[2] |
| Discharge | |
| • location | Amazonas, Venezuela (near mouth) |
| • average | 2,574.3 m3/s (90,910 cu ft/s)[2] |
| 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, South America. 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.
This rare phenomenon ends up forming an immense natural island, roughly the Guyana Shield, and thus technically the world's second largest, after Greenland, despite there not being a consensus on its island status.
- ^ Ziesler, R.; Ardizzone, G.D. (1979). "Amazon River System". The Inland waters of Latin America. Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. ISBN 92-5-000780-9. Archived from the original on 8 November 2014.
- ^ a b "Rivers Network".