The Trombetas is a large

river A river is a natural flowing watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, sea, lake or another river. In some cases, a river flows into the ground and becomes dry at the end of its course without reaching another body of ...

on the northern side of the

Amazon River The Amazon River (, ; es, Río Amazonas, pt, Rio Amazonas) in South America is the largest river by discharge volume of water in the world, and the disputed longest river system in the world in comparison to the Nile. The headwaters of t ...

Course

The Trombetas is long, and is navigable by 500 ton vessels for a stretch of . The Trombetas river gives birth to very many rivers, including the Anamu river. It is formed by the junction of the Poana and Anuma rivers on the border between Brazil and

Guyana Guyana ( or ), officially the Cooperative Republic of Guyana, is a country on the northern mainland of South America. Guyana is an indigenous word which means "Land of Many Waters". The capital city is Georgetown. Guyana is bordered by the ...

. Where it meets the Paraná de Sapucuá it takes the name of lower Trombetas, and reaches up to in width, with the stream divided by several long and narrow islands. It runs through the municipalities of

Oriximiná Oriximiná is the westernmost and second-largest (by territorial area) municipality in the Brazilian state of Pará. It is also the fourth-largest in the country. Location The city lies on the Trombetas river, northwest of Óbidos. The city ...

Terra Santa Terra Santa is a municipality in the state of Pará in the Northern region of Brazil. The municipality contains part of the Saracá-Taquera National Forest The Saracá-Taquera National Forest ( pt, Floresta Nacional de Saracá-Taquera) is a na ...

, Óbidos and Faro. The river basin has an area of about , with an intricate pattern of tributaries including the Poana, Anamu, Turuna, Inhabu, Mapuera and Paru de Oeste. In the

Saracá-Taquera National Forest The Saracá-Taquera National Forest ( pt, Floresta Nacional de Saracá-Taquera) is a national forest in the state of Pará, Brazil. Location The Saracá-Taquera National Forest is in the Amazon biome. It has an area of . It covers parts of the ...

the main streams in the Trombetas basin are the Papagaio, Água Fria, Moura, Jamari, Ajará, Terra Preta and Saracá. Its

confluence In geography, a confluence (also: ''conflux'') occurs where two or more flowing bodies of water join to form a single channel. A confluence can occur in several configurations: at the point where a tributary joins a larger river (main stem); o ...

with the Amazon is just west of the town of

Óbidos, Pará Óbidos is a municipality in Pará, Brazil located at the narrowest and swiftest part of the Amazon River. The town was founded in 1697, and is located between Santarém and Oriximiná. It is the seat of the Diocese of Óbidos. The town was n ...

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

. Its sources is in the

Guiana highlands The Guianas, sometimes called by the Spanish loan-word ''Guayanas'' (''Las Guayanas''), is a region in north-eastern South America which includes the following three territories: * French Guiana, an overseas department and region of France * ...

, but its long course is frequently interrupted by violent currents, rocky barriers, and rapids. The inferior zone of the river, as far up as the first fall, the Porteira, has but little broken water and is low and swampy; but above the long series of cataracts and rapids the character and aspect of the valley completely change, and the climate is much better. The river is

navigable A body of water, such as a river, canal or lake, is navigable if it is deep, wide and calm enough for a water vessel (e.g. boats) to pass safely. Such a navigable water is called a ''waterway'', and is preferably with few obstructions against di ...

for above its mouth. The river reaches its highest levels in April and May, since the rainy season usually peaks in April.

Region

The river flows through the Uatuma-Trombetas moist forests ecoregion. The river basin lies partly within the

Grão-Pará Ecological Station The Grão-Pará Ecological Station ( pt, Estação Ecológica Grão-Pará is a strictly protected ecological station in the state of Pará, Brazil. It managed by the state of Pará. With of well-preserved Amazon rainforest it is the largest fully ...

, the largest fully protected tropical forest conservation unit on the planet. South of the ecological station it flows through the

Trombetas State Forest The Trombetas State Forest ( pt, Floresta Estadual do Trombetas) is a state forest in the state of Pará, Brazil. Location The Trombetas State Forest is divided between the municipalities of Oriximiná (87.91%), Óbidos (10.27%) and Alenquer ( ...

from north to south.

References

Sources

* * Tributaries of the Amazon River Rivers of Pará {{Pará-river-stub

Course

Region

See also

References

Sources