Blackwater river

High school (ages 12+)
Geography

Name:

Date:

Step 1 · Read the article

Open the article and read it at the level above. Then answer the questions below in your own words.

https://smallwhale.org/articles/blackwater-river

Write what each word means, using the article.

Do not copy the article. Write two things you learned, the way you would explain them to a friend.

Answers below are taken from the article’s stored facts, so they match what the student read.

1. How long is the Blackwater river?Approximately 1,100 km (680 miles)
2. What is the location?Brazil
3. What is the source?Brazilian rainforest
4. What makes the Blackwater River look like tea?The water is dark because it contains a lot of tannins and humic acids that come from decaying plants in the forest.
5. Why is the water of the Blackwater River acidic?The high amount of tannins lowers the pH, usually between 4.0 and 6.0, making the water more acidic than other rivers.

Tannins and Humic Acids: Organic compounds leached from decaying vegetation, responsible for the dark color and acidity of blackwater.
Watershed: The area of land where all of the precipitation drains into a common river or body of water.
Ecotone: A transition area between two different ecosystems, such as where a blackwater river meets a whitewater river.