Orinoco

The Orinoco () is one of the longest rivers in South America at . Its drainage basin, sometimes known as the Orinoquia, covers , with 76.3 percent of it in Venezuela and the remainder in Colombia. It is the fourth largest river in the world by discharge volume of water. The Orinoco River and its tributaries are the major transportation system for eastern and interior Venezuela and the Llanos of Colombia. The environment and wildlife in the Orinoco's basin are extremely diverse.

Etymology

The river's name is derived from the Warao term for "a place to paddle", itself derived from the terms ''güiri'' (paddle) and ''noko'' (place) i.e. a navigable place.

History

The mouth of the Orinoco River at the Atlantic Ocean was documented by Christopher Columbus on 1 August 1498, during his third voyage. Its source at the Cerro Delgado–Chalbaud, in the Parima range, was not explored until 453 years later, in 1951. The source, near the Venezuelan–Brazilian border, at above sea level (), was explored in 1951 by a joint French-Venezuelan expedition.

The Orinoco, as well as its tributaries in the eastern llanos such as the Apure and Meta, were explored in the 16th century by German expeditions under Ambrosius Ehinger and his successors. In 1531, starting at the principal outlet in the delta, the Boca de Navios, Diego de Ordaz sailed up the river to the Meta. Antonio de Berrio sailed down the Casanare to the Meta, and then down the Orinoco River and back to Coro. In 1595, after capturing de Berrio to obtain information while conducting an expedition to find the fabled city of El Dorado, the Englishman Sir Walter Raleigh sailed down the river, reaching the savanna country.

Alexander von Humboldt explored the basin in 1800, reporting on the pink river dolphins. He published extensively on the river's flora and fauna.

The sources of the Orinoco River, located at Cerro Carlos Delgado Chalbaud (2º19’05” N, 63º21’42” W), were discovered in 1951 by the French-Venezuelan expedition that went back and explored the Upper Orinoco course to the Sierra Parima near the border with Brasil, headed by Venezuelan army officer Frank Risquez Iribarren.

The first bridge across the Orinoco River, the Angostura Bridge at Ciudad Bolívar, Venezuela, was completed in 1967.

In 1968, an expedition was set off by National Geographic and Hovercraft from Manaus (Brazil) to Port of Spain (Trinidad). Aboard of a SR.N6 hoverwork the expedicionaries followed the Negro river upstream to where it is joined by the Casiquiare canal in the border between Colombia and Venezuela. After following the Casiquiare to the Orinoco River they hovered thru perilous Rapids of Maipures and Atures. The Orinoco was then traversed down to its mouths in the Gulf of Paria and then to Port of Spain. The primary purpose of the expedition was filming for the BBC
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