MOUNTAINS

Much of the western Amazon River Basin is ringed by the Andes mountains, the world's second highest mountain range and the backbone of South America (see modern maps). The Amazon's source is high in the Peruvian Andes. In the foothills of the Andes is much of the Amazon's biodiversity. There are more species of orchids and hummingbirds here than in the lowland river basin. The selected pictures presented in these pages give a sense of the wonder of the Amazon highlands, and how much it differs from other parts of Amazonia.