Most colorful river in the world.

The river depicted below is the Caristales  is located near the town of La Macarena in Colombia, South America, The river is famous for being the only river having 5 colors and famous as ” The river that ran away to Paradise”.

The river appears in many colors, including yellow, green, blue, black, and especially red caused by the Macarenia clavigera (Podostemaceae) at the bottom of the river.

Caño Cristales has aquatic plants and corals. The red color is specific due to plant species found there called Macarenia clavigera. The rainforest of the area has the ecosystem that has typical hot, warm and cold temperature controlling the vegetation. The mountainous area is home to about 420 species of birds, 10 species of amphibians, 43 species of reptiles, and eight primates.

The river itself is totally devoid of fish, due to its high concentrations of sedimentary materials. Other channels of the Macarena, such as the Caño Siete Machos, hold red plants in winter. These red plants adhere tightly to rocks in places where the river has faster current.

In the jungle of the Macarenia, plants struggle to find nutrients in the soil, while a population of various fungi help break down the trunks of fallen trees.

The small circular pits, -giant’s kettle- that characterize the river bed, have been formed by pebbles or chunks of highly dense minerals. When one of these harder fragments falls into one of the cavities, large or small, it is rotated by the water current and begins to carve at the cavity wall and increases the dimensions of the pit. 

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One can visit this area of by air taking a flight from Bogota. Most convenient time for visit from end July until early December

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