Rio Negro (Amazon)

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/rio-negro-amazon

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. What is the origin?Tepuis of the department of Guainía, Colombia
2. What is the sediment load?Low average sediment load (5.76 million tonnes per year near Manaus)
3. What makes the Rio Negro a blackwater river?The Rio Negro is very acidic and has very little sediment. Its dark color comes from tannins and humic acids that leach from slowly decomposing plants in the surrounding soil.
4. Where does the Rio Negro start?It begins in the tepuis of the Guainía department in Colombia and is called Guainía in its upper reaches.

Blackwater River: A river characterized by dark, acidic water stained by tannins and humic acids from decaying organic matter, with low mineral content.
Tributary: A stream or river that flows into a larger stream or river, or forms the beginning of one.
Amazon Basin: The vast drainage area of the Amazon River and its tributaries, encompassing a significant portion of South America.
Oligotrophic: Describing a body of water, such as a lake or river, that has a low concentration of nutrients and therefore supports limited aquatic plant life.