Eruption
and Erosion
Science tells a different story. Long ago, the land here broke apart. This caused lava to pour from volcanoes. The lava built up layers of rock.
As the rock cooled, faults, or cracks, appeared. Water running down the faults eroded, or wore away, the land.
Waterfalls are formed as a river flows from hard rock to soft rock.
The river erodes the soft rock at a faster rate. It forms a step in the river bed.
The hard rock that is left creates a hard ledge. The river falls over the ledge.
The falls formed where the Paraná and Iguazú rivers meet. Weathering moved the Iguazú Falls far upriver.
Two riverbeds formed. Falls formed at the place where these two rivers met. As water fell into the rivers, it weathered away rock on the bottom. The upper layers crumbled. Today, the falls look like a staircase.
Brazil
Argentina
Paraná
Iguazú
Paraguay
Into the Rainforest
Water is just part of the beauty of the falls. This place is also home to many species. Plants. Mammals. Birds. Reptiles. Amphibians. Some species are found nowhere else in the world.
black capuchin monkey
toucan
Beware of the coatis! They can bite your hand when they try to grab your food.
As I walked through the rainforest, I saw tall palm trees and even taller rosewoods. I saw fruit hanging from small trees.
Butterflies fluttered through the air. I also saw a toucan in flight and monkeys in the trees. I got a good view of a young caiman. And coatis seemed to be everywhere! They look like raccoons. I kept an eye out for jaguars. They live here, too.