These plains, broken by low mesas, are used for cattle grazing. The rivers and streams winding through the llanos seasonally overflow their banks, turning the grasslands into wetlands, which then gradually dry out. These alternately wet and dry grasslands form an extraordinary wild-life habitat with many species of birds such as ibis, herons, storks , mammals such as capybaras and pumas , and reptiles such as anacondas and caimans.
In the Gran Sabana, south of the Orinoco in the Guiana Highlands along the Brazilian frontier, grasslands surround the forested tepui tabletop mountains. Venezuela suffered the loss of over 8 percent of its forests during the s. The deforestation resulted mainly from agricultural and ranching expansion and also from urbanization, pollution, and logging.
About 60 percent of the natural forest north of the Orinoco River was destroyed. At present, 48 percent of Venezuela still has forest cover, which survives mostly in the northeast around the Orinoco Delta, the southeast, and the south. Mining and logging operations, both legal and illegal, continue to deforest the Guiana Highlands, however, where much of the remaining natural forest is found.
Efforts are being made to protect the remaining forests, with 35 percent of Venezuela's land use officially regulated and 29 percent of Venezuela's terrain designated as national park land. Hill regions of Venezuela include Tachira a coffee-growing area in the west , the Sierra de San Luis in the northwest, Margarita Island, and the Paria Peninsula, as well as parts of the south. The capital, Caracas, is surrounded by urbanized, deforested hillsides that are vulnerable to landslides.
The Northern Mountains and their spur ranges extend from the Colombian border on the west to the coastal Paria Peninsula on the east. The Cordillera de Venezuela runs eastward along the coast. This range, where altitudes average over 1, meters 5, feet and individual peaks reach from 2, to 2, meters 7, to 9, feet , is flanked on the north by narrow coastal plains, except where the mountain slopes descend directly to the Caribbean.
Part of the Cordillera de Venezuela terminates at Cape Codera on the Caribbean, but remnants of a parallel range continue eastward, ending near the Unare River. Farther eastward the Cumana Highlands also called the Eastern Highlands rise in a broad block and extend to the east, terminating near the Gulf of Paria.
At the core of the Cumana Highlands, some peaks reach 2, meters 8, feet , but most of the system is made up of relatively low, dissected uplands. In the south, the Guiana Highlands contain many mountain ranges. The Sierra Parima and Pacaraima Mountains form the southeastern borders with Brazil, extending south and east, respectively, from a common point of origin.
The Sierra Parima reach heights of 1, meters 5, feet while Mount Roraina in the Pacaraima Mountains towers to 2, meters 9, feet. The Sierra Maigualida form an arc in the center of southern Venezuela. Dramatic river canyons cut through the Canaima region of the Guiana Highlands.
Devil's Canyon lies at the foot of Angel Falls in southeastern Venezuela. Kavac Canyon is one of the world's narrowest, with a depth of meters feet but a width of only 1. Hacha Canyon is also located in the Canaima region. The cave is named for the bird species that has inhabited the cave for several generations.
The birds are considered to be one of the largest colonies of this unique species, a nocturnal, fruit-eating bird that can grow to a size of 33 centimeters 13 inches with a wingspan of 91 centimeters 36 inches.
Though native inhabitants had explored the entry to the cave in order to hunt the birds, Alexander von Humboldt conducted the first scientific exploration of the cave during his famous expedition to South America The term "Latin America" is more of a cultural and political designation than a geographic description.
It generally refers to the countries of the Western Hemisphere, south of the United States, where the native language is Spanish, Portuguese, or French. These three languages are Romance languages, which means that they were all derived from Latin, the language spoken by the ancient Romans. The Guiana Highlands, rising almost immediately south of the Orinoco River, are considered to be the oldest land areas of the country; erosion over the centuries has caused unusual formations.
Comprising about 57 percent of the national territory, the ,square-kilometer ,square-mile highlands consist principally of plateau areas scored by swiftly running tributaries of the Orinoco.
The most conspicuous topographical feature of the region is the Gran Sabana, a deeply eroded high plateau some 36, square kilometers 14, square miles high, that rises deep in the interior in abrupt cliffs reaching elevations up to meters 2, feet.
From its rolling surface emerge massive perpendicular, flat-topped bluffs, called tepuis. The loftiest tepui, Mount Roraima at the intersection of Venezuela, Brazil, and Guyana , exceeds 2, meters 9, feet. The enormous Guri hydroelectric project on the Caroni River, the second-largest hydro-electric plant in the world, contains one of the world's largest dams. Completed in , the damming of this river caused the flooding of large forest areas. This massive flooding resulted in environmental protests, including vigorous opposition to a plan to run power cables from the Guri project through the Cainama National Park to Brazil.
A megadam project to generate electricity for export has been proposed for the Caura River in the central Guiana Highlands. This proposal is also causing a great deal of controversy among environmentalists. The total area of Venezuela ranks as the 32nd largest total area value of all the countries in the world.
For every square mile of Venezuela, there are approximately 93 people. Where is Venezuela in the World? World View: Continent View:.
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