The continent of South America makes up some 12% of the
worlds land surface and offers a wide range in both climatic and
geographic regions. The lowland areas to the north are dominated
by the vast Amazon basin, drained by the Amazon River the second
longest in the world. Covering an area of some six million sq.
miles much of the Amazon basin is covered by Equatorial Rain
Forest, an ecosystem that houses more species of flora and fauna
than any other single region of the world. Along the western side
of the continent and running almost its complete length is the
Andean Range of mountains containing many of the highest peaks in
the world. 