- 5 hours ago
- #brightside
- #brightsideglobal
The Amazon River is the largest and most biodiverse river in the world, but it also harbors some of the most mysterious and terrifying creatures ever seen. In this video, we will explore why the Amazon River creates monsters, and what factors contribute to their evolution and survival. We will also look at some of the most amazing and horrifying examples of these aquatic beasts, such as the giant anaconda, the electric eel, the piranha, and the candiru. #brightside #brightsideglobal TIMESTAMPS: 0:01 Amazon river monsters 08:30 River under the Black Sea 17:46 Why there are no bridges over Amazon river This video is made for entertainment purposes. We do not make any warranties about the completeness, safety and reliability. Any action you take upon the information in this video is strictly at your own risk, and we will not be liable for any damages or losses. It is the viewer's responsibility to use judgement, care and precaution if you plan to replicate.
Category
😹
FunTranscript
00:00You're strapped in a boat cruising down the Amazon River with the sun scorching hot.
00:05As you check out your map, your boat starts rocking back and forth.
00:09The water is starting to get more intense, so you hang on for dear life.
00:14You tuck your map in your pocket and try to take control of your boat.
00:18You strike some jagged rocks and duck low to avoid tree branches.
00:22Your boat strikes a large rock out of nowhere and capsizes.
00:26You're swimming in the murky green water.
00:29While you're trying your best to get ashore, your boat gets washed away.
00:33Underneath the water lies a whole new world of bizarre and dangerous animals.
00:39Candiru fish are snake-like creatures that can grow up to 16 inches long.
00:44Arapimus can weigh more than an adult male and are taller than most basketball players.
00:50They're the biggest freshwater fish in South America.
00:52They have a hybrid gill system that forces them to pop up to the surface every 5 to 15 minutes
00:58to breathe in oxygen for their large swim bladder.
01:02You swim out of the raging water and dry yourself off.
01:05Oh no!
01:07Your map is completely soaked!
01:09There's no way you can get to your destination without it.
01:12You venture into the thick rainforest, shoving the branches and leaves away.
01:16As you get deeper, you notice something on a tree.
01:19You see, it's barely moving, but it's got sharp claws and a raggedy coat.
01:23It stretches its arm to another branch and tries to pull itself up, ever so slowly.
01:31Sloths sleep more than half their days and only head down from trees once a week.
01:36They're so motionless, they sometimes grow algae and moss on their fur.
01:40The rainforest gets denser with each step until there's barely any sunlight illuminating the path in front of you.
01:47You notice a figure following you.
01:50With every branch you step on, you can hear a faint sound right next to you creeping around.
01:55You start walking a bit faster and the sound catches up with you.
01:59You make it out of the dense part and tread along a narrow path until you reach a cliff.
02:04You can't walk normally here, so you pin against the wall and walk sideways to cross the hills.
02:10You slowly move across with the river 30 feet below you.
02:14You move your right foot and some rocks fall into the river.
02:18You keep going and misstep.
02:20You're about to fall, but you hold on to a large tree branch and pull yourself up.
02:25You notice a couple of colorful, poisoned frogs inches away from your fingers.
02:30Touching any of these frogs can be extremely dangerous and harmful.
02:34Despite their amazing color patterns, the golden poison frog is one of the most poisonous animals in the world.
02:41One of them hops right next to you, so you let go of the branch and fall back in the
02:46river.
02:46The river is washing you down until you reach a calm current.
02:51Underneath you is a swarm of piranhas swimming with their sharp teeth.
02:55The red color on their skin is unmistakable, so you swim off like an Olympic athlete.
03:01Piranhas will eat anything that gets in their way, no matter the size.
03:05You grip onto a log and climb up a small rock to catch your breath.
03:10There's a huge electric eel underneath the rock.
03:13Despite their name, they're more related to catfish than eels.
03:17They use their powerful 600 volts of electricity to defend themselves and catch food.
03:23You're stuck, unless you're like the common basilisk that can run on the water like a jet ski.
03:29These incredible lizards have special webbing on their toes and can run the distance of a basketball court.
03:35You hop on a bunch of rocks until you reach the land.
03:38You continue walking along the riverbank until you come across a moving rock.
03:42You rub your eyes and see it moving again.
03:45It's a dinosaur-looking turtle that resembles a crocodile with armor.
03:50The Mata Mata is a freshwater turtle that disguises itself with its surroundings to catch prey.
03:56Their heads stretch longer than their bodies.
03:59You shimmy your way past it and continue.
04:02You head back into the rainforest and find a spot to rest.
04:05Wait, there are giant ants everywhere!
04:07They're the biggest ants in the world and can produce one of the most painful stings out there,
04:13even comparable to a wasp's sting.
04:16You immediately get up and find another place to rest.
04:19As you continue walking along, you notice the same feeling of something following you.
04:25You can hear some leaves rustling, but it's getting dark and there's no way of telling.
04:29You find a nice little spot to build a campfire and catch some Zs.
04:34But in the Amazon, everything is a threat.
04:37Except for those cute capybaras wandering around.
04:40They live in groups next to water sources.
04:42They're also the biggest rodents in the world.
04:45You don't need to worry about them if you're stuck in the middle of the Amazon rainforest.
04:49Suddenly, you feel something slithering up next to you.
04:53You look down and see a massive green anaconda just about to constrict you.
04:58They are the heaviest snakes in the world and can grow up to 20 feet long and have a huge
05:03appetite.
05:04You get up and sprint your way out of there.
05:07All right, you found a decent cave to crash in.
05:14It's daytime again, and you're still alive.
05:17You continue walking along the rainforest.
05:19You were able to find some breakfast to boost your energy for the rest of the day.
05:23You spot something on a tree that looks like a branch.
05:27But it's actually a potu, a master of disguise that can spend days motionless on broken tree branches.
05:34These bizarre birds use those branches as their permanent home, where they lay their eggs and chill all day.
05:41You continue your way through the rainforest and see a Brazilian wandering spider crawling on a tree branch right in
05:48front of you.
05:48Eight of these species can be found in the Amazon area.
05:52They are some of the most aggressive and venomous spiders out there.
05:55So, you make a big detour and walk away from it.
05:59You feel someone walking next to you again, but you still can't figure out what it is.
06:04You see a steep cliff with a waterfall hitting a large lake ahead of you.
06:08Looks peaceful.
06:09Until you see a team of black caimans gathering around the shore.
06:13They're the biggest predators in the whole Amazon ecosystem and feed on anything that moves.
06:19It's a good thing you're on high ground.
06:21Otherwise, you slip and fall down the river, right on the deep end.
06:27So far, no caimans spotted you.
06:29You swim underwater and try to get to the opposite end of where the reptiles are.
06:34As you climb out and dry yourself off, you notice some large black spots on you.
06:39You try pulling them off, but they've latched on pretty hard.
06:43The Amazon giant leech finds its target by tracking movement and shadow.
06:48Once they attach themselves to the skin, it's extremely difficult to extract them.
06:52The best way to do so is to slide your finger next to its mouth and pull it off slowly.
06:58You manage to get them off your body and see that the caimans are swimming towards you.
07:03You're pinned to the wall with the lake of hungry reptiles approaching.
07:07Suddenly, a pink dolphin jumps out of the water and splashes all over them.
07:12They can grow larger than humans and are the celebrities of the Amazon.
07:16Scientists think they get their color from the blood capillaries on their skin.
07:20The Amazon even has bull sharks swimming around.
07:24These carnivorous giant fish are threatening to humans and can swim in both salt water and fresh water.
07:30These sharks prey on anything within their reach, including other sharks.
07:34The dolphin distracted the caimans, so you climb up the cliff and try to find the best way to escape.
07:41Opened jaws waiting for you to fall into the pit are right below you.
07:46You're lucky enough to escape to the top, but as your arms pull you up, the first thing that you
07:51see is a jaguar looking straight at you.
07:54It's the creature that's been following you this whole time.
07:57You get up while it starts circling you, timing its strike.
08:01You know that you can't take on a jaguar, nor can you outrun it, so you grab a large tree
08:06branch from the ground to defend yourself.
08:09It jumps at you, but you duck down in time.
08:11The jaguar lands in the water far away from the caimans cross.
08:15It's a good thing these large kitties are excellent swimmers.
08:18You pick yourself up and continue, and you're surprised, you find your boat again.
08:23You fix it up and sail your way out of the Amazon.
08:27Phew!
08:29Okay, let's play a little guessing game, shall we?
08:32Can you name the sixth largest river on Earth in terms of volume?
08:36That's the amount of water that flows through a waterway.
08:40The first couple of rivers are easy to list.
08:42Number one, of course, is the Amazon River in South America.
08:46Then we have the Congo in Africa, and the Ganges in India.
08:51Feel free to name all the rivers on the planet.
08:54You won't get any closer to the answer.
08:57Why?
08:58Because this river is not on the surface, but underneath the waves of the Black Sea.
09:04In 2010, a team of scientists discovered this river while studying the Bosphorus Strait in Turkey.
09:11Sonar scanning revealed a channel at the bottom of the Black Sea.
09:15The channel had water flowing through it.
09:18It turned out that at places, it's 115 feet deep.
09:23That's three times as tall as your average telephone pole.
09:26This flow of water acts like a real river.
09:30It has rapids and waterfalls, and its volume is 350 times greater than that of the River Thames in London.
09:37Talk about a strong undercurrent.
09:40If it was a surface river, it would really be in the top ten.
09:44Bad news for the Madera River in Bolivia and Brazil, the present number six.
09:49But how did this underwater river form?
09:52The answer lies in the amazing features of the Black Sea.
09:56It gets its water from two main sources.
09:59The first are the rivers that flow into it, like the Danube, Dnieper, and Don.
10:05A lot of Ds there.
10:06But more importantly, they are all freshwater waterways.
10:10On the other side, quite literally, there is the Mediterranean.
10:14And it's salty.
10:16Like, a lot.
10:17But when this saltwater gets inside the Black Sea, it goes straight to the bottom.
10:23You see, freshwater is lighter than saltwater.
10:26This creates stratification.
10:29It's a fancy term that simply means that the two types of water don't mix together.
10:34Saltwater has a higher density, so it drops right down to the bottom.
10:39If you want to see how that works, you can do an experiment at home.
10:43Pour mineral water into one cup and saltwater into another.
10:48Table salt will do.
10:49Then put a grape in each cup.
10:52You'll see how it immediately sinks to the bottom of the cup filled with fresh water.
10:57The grape will stay afloat in the cup filled with saltwater.
11:01The same thing is happening inside the Black Sea.
11:04But there is another side to this phenomenon.
11:07The upper layer of water is rich in oxygen.
11:10This means it can support life.
11:13The bottom layer, however, is anoxic.
11:16Yep, you guessed it.
11:18This means there is no oxygen at the bottom.
11:21But this isn't a bad thing.
11:23Because of this trait of the Black Sea, shipwrecks are able to survive for centuries.
11:29Oxygen decomposes wood.
11:31And from what material did the ancient people make their ships?
11:34That's correct.
11:36Timber.
11:36Recently, in 2018, scientists discovered the oldest Greek shipwreck on Earth.
11:43The merchant ship lies more than a mile deep at the bottom of the sea.
11:47Experts estimate that the vessel is 2,400 years old.
11:51The wreck was valuable for historians to study all the elements of ancient ship construction.
11:58From the mast to the rowing benches, it's all intact.
12:02The wreck lies some 50 miles off the coast of Bulgaria.
12:06But no one has seen it in person.
12:09Explorers sent a Deep Sea ROV, or Remotely Operated Vehicle, to film the wreckage.
12:15It was impossible for a diver to go down.
12:18Hmm, but the Black Sea doesn't look that huge on a map.
12:22Could it be that deep?
12:23Oh yes, it's way deeper than people think.
12:26You could stack six Empire State Buildings at the deepest point of the Black Sea, around 7,257 feet.
12:35This inland sea isn't the only place on Earth where researchers have discovered shipwrecks and underwater rivers.
12:42One of the largest channels running along the ocean floor lies off the coast of South America.
12:48It runs from the mouth of the mighty Amazon and into the Atlantic Ocean.
12:53Studying underwater rivers isn't an easy task.
12:56The depth and the strong currents make it impossible to send in divers.
13:01Even the equipment for underwater research has to be sturdy.
13:05Otherwise, the current will just wash it away.
13:08That's why the underwater river in the Black Sea was ideal for scientists to explore.
13:14Earth's oceans and seas are powerful.
13:17But, lucky for us, there are places where divers can admire underwater rivers.
13:23Ever heard of a cenote?
13:24Sounds Spanish.
13:26Well, that's because it is.
13:28Cenotes are underground caves.
13:30They form after the limestone above collapses, revealing the groundwater under them.
13:36The term cenote is associated with the Yucatan Peninsula in Mexico.
13:41Ancient Maya used them as water sources.
13:44In the Mayan language, the word cenote meant sacred well.
13:49Researchers estimate there are some 10,000 cenotes spread across the Yucatan Peninsula.
13:55You can also find them in other places, such as Cuba and Australia.
14:00Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.
14:03But, unofficially, the most beautiful cenote is located just south of the town of Tulum in Mexico.
14:10The name reflects the cave's divine beauty, Cenote Angelita.
14:15But, people don't visit this cenote to go swimming.
14:19Its bottom is much more interesting.
14:22A scuba tank is all you need to finally admire an underwater river firsthand.
14:27The waters are dark and foggy, so divers use powerful flashlights.
14:32After a hundred-foot dive, a marvelous sight appears.
14:36An underwater river with trees along its banks.
14:40Some of them even have green leaves, just like any other water flow on dry land.
14:46But, it's not really a river.
14:48Here comes the fascinating part.
14:51Remember how saltwater and freshwater don't mix?
14:54Well, the river the divers see is actually a thick layer of fog between the two types of water.
15:01Three feet of hydrogen sulfates, to be exact.
15:04This is the compound that water processing plants use to remove chlorine from drinking water.
15:10The substance is so heavy that the fog it produces moves independently from the surrounding water.
15:16And, it creates an illusion that a river is flowing underwater.
15:21But, there are other real rivers that play tricks on you.
15:25Take, for example, the Mystery River in Indiana.
15:28It's the longest underground river in the United States.
15:33Explorers discovered the river and its cave system, Blue Spring Caverns, in the 19th century.
15:39Nearly three miles of the river are navigable.
15:42Isn't that impressive?
15:44You can book a boat tour on a river that you can't even see.
15:48But, the most mysterious river on the planet is the Saraswati River in India.
15:54The coolest part about it is that it doesn't exist.
15:58It was an alleged river only mentioned in ancient literature.
16:02For centuries, people thought that it was just a myth.
16:06Then, satellite images showed that it might be real.
16:10Ancient texts spoke of a major confluence of three mighty rivers, the Ganges, Yamuna, and Saraswati.
16:18The first two are visible today.
16:20But, where's the third one?
16:23That's what scientists decided to find out.
16:26Images from an American satellite showed the presence of underground water in the area.
16:32Until then, researchers thought that these were paleo channels.
16:36This simply means that water flowed through them a long time ago.
16:40But, to their surprise, it appeared that there was still water inside these channels.
16:46Scientists estimated that the Saraswati River flowed above the ground some 5,000 years ago.
16:53But, it didn't dry up completely.
16:55It just went underground.
16:57Some 200 feet below the ground.
17:00Local experts believe that the river still slowly flows into the sea.
17:05The Saraswati River got hidden under the desert sand.
17:09This was a natural process.
17:11But, many rivers have been forced underground because of human activity.
17:15In London, England, several dozen small and medium-sized rivers now flow under the ground.
17:22Maps from the 19th century still show them as rivers.
17:26But, today, they only exist in the names of the streets that were built above them, such as Fleet Street.
17:32The same thing happened in New York.
17:34But, this doesn't mean that these streams have disappeared for good.
17:38When engineers want to rebuild or modify a building, they still consult city maps from centuries ago.
17:45No one wants a long-lost brook to flood their basement.
17:49The Amazon River travels through nine South American countries at a length of over 4,000 miles.
17:56Still, it's impossible to cross it by a bridge.
17:59With the river being the main highway, traveling through this dense forest, and so few areas populated around the river,
18:05there's just no reason to have one.
18:07The river can rise up to 30 feet.
18:09And, the river crossings that were only 3 miles wide can expand to over 30 miles in just a few
18:14short weeks in certain spots.
18:16Making a bridge nearly impossible to build here.
18:20In New Zealand, in the coastal town of Maorakee, there are huge spherical boulders.
18:25Some rocks are 6.5 feet tall and weigh about 7 tons.
18:28As much as 10 cows.
18:30Ooh, there's a 10-cow boulder.
18:32Maori legend has it that these rocks are from the remains of the goods from a large shipwreck that happened
18:37hundreds of years ago.
18:39From a more scientific perspective, it's sand and gravel combined to form these giant boulders.
18:44Waves and winds give them a smooth, round appearance over time.
18:48The whole process might take millions of years.
18:51Indonesia's Kaiwan Ijen volcano is famous for a stunning turquoise-colored lake, sitting at the top of the peak, but
18:58don't dip in.
18:59It's an acid lake.
19:01But its scariest part is the sulfuric gases leaking out when lava flows freely, reaching temperatures hotter than 1,000
19:08degrees Fahrenheit.
19:09When those gases come in contact with the air, they combust into a spectacular electric blue flame.
19:15That's why the volcano has blue lava.
19:18The island of Surtsey, south of Iceland, was formed over 50 years ago by a volcanic eruption.
19:25It all began back in 1963, when a powerful volcanic eruption created one of the youngest islands on the planet.
19:31All sorts of bacteria, fungi, and molds began taking over the island, leading to numerous other animals finding their way
19:38here, like seals and birds.
19:40Birds in ocean waves deposited seeds all over the island.
19:44Sadly, the island's getting smaller now because of water and wind erosion.
19:49Located off the coast of Brazil, there's an island called…
19:52I'm a bit rusty on my Portuguese, so here it is on the screen.
19:56It looks perfectly untouched and pristine.
19:58Bad news?
19:59Dangerous snakes overrun it completely.
20:02So, take a doctor with you in case you want to go there.
20:04Over 4,000 of the golden lancehead vipers inhabit this island.
20:09These 3-foot-long snakes are among the most venomous in the entire world.
20:13Yeah, I think I'll skip that.
20:16Landing down under, you can see the Opera House, Uluru, lots of kangaroos, and catch the strangest wave of the
20:22world, Wave Rock in Western Australia.
20:25It's not made of water, but stone.
20:27It can be up to 50 feet tall and almost 300 feet long.
20:31It's especially incredible after rains in winter, when the Western Australian wildflowers fill up the entire landscape.
20:38In Atlanta, there's a world of Coca-Cola museum.
20:41The formula for the secret recipe is in a large security vault, heavily guarded at all times.
20:47Only a handful of people can get through those vault doors.
20:51Since its creation in 1886, the company has kept it a secret for only the most honest employees.
20:57In 2006, a former worker tried to sell the formula to Pepsi, only for Pepsi to call the police and
21:03inform Coca-Cola.
21:05The polka dot lakes is a must for anyone who is in British Columbia.
21:09After the summer's scorching heat evaporates the lake's water, it leaves behind yellow, blue, and green water spots.
21:15These pools are full of all sorts of minerals, like sodium, calcium, and magnesium sulfates, that get concentrated in the
21:23pools.
21:23You can't get too close or even dip your feet into them.
21:26A fence protects the entire lake with a sign about how culturally and ecologically sensitive the area is.
21:33In Death Valley, California, there's a mystery of the sailing stones.
21:37Since the early 1900s, the mystery of how all these stones were seemingly moving by themselves across the desert floor
21:44baffled everyone.
21:46Some believe that the rocks move by thin pieces of ice around the stones pushed by winds after winter.
21:52No one ever saw any of these rocks moving until 2014.
21:56Scientists set time-lapse recorders, and the footage showed the rocks sliding along the ground over time.
22:02The marble caves in Chile, located in the beautiful area of Patagonia, form from over 6,000 years of waves
22:10wearing down the rocks.
22:11The crystal blue walls reflect the vibrant turquoise water, making it perfect for kayaking.
22:17Walking in Chestnut Ridge Park in New York, one can see an eternal flame.
22:22What makes this one stand out, though, is it's underneath a waterfall.
22:26Occasionally, the flame will go out for short periods, but it will light up again.
22:30Sometimes, it's thanks to certain hikers along the way.
22:34If you ever stop your car on a magnetic hill in New Brunswick, Canada,
22:39you'll see the car might start rolling backwards up the hill, all by itself.
22:44While it looks like it's moving the wrong way, this is just an illusion.
22:47There are several hills like this all around the world.
22:50What looks like an incline is the opposite, all because there's no horizon for perspective.
22:57The brightest bioluminescent bay in the world, called Puerto Mosquito, is located off the coast of Puerto Rico.
23:04The bay is named for the pirate, Roberto Cofrisi, and his small boat, El Mosquito, not after those annoying insects.
23:11During the summer months, you'll have glassy water at night, with millions of tiny microorganisms bumping into each other and
23:18emitting blue light.
23:21The Chocolate Hills in the Philippines is a group of unusually shaped hills located in the middle of the island
23:27of Bohol in the Philippines.
23:29There are 1,000 to 2,000 discovered so far.
23:32They have nothing to do with chocolate at all, but they resemble the color after the dry season, when the
23:37grass turns from green to brown.
23:39In the northeastern part of Thailand, 466 miles away from Bangkok, is a 75-million-year-old rock formation sticking
23:48right out of the mountains.
23:50Their shapes look just like a pod of whales swimming together.
23:53No wonder this place is called Three Whale Rocks.
23:56Millions of years ago, this area was just a desert, but this land has changed quite dramatically during this time.
24:02These sandstone mountains were lifted up by plate tectonics, that's the shifting of the crust layers, called lithosphere, and erosion
24:10by the Mekong River, resulting in the strangely shaped rock formations we see today.
24:15Salar de Ioni in Bolivia is the world's largest salt flat.
24:19At 4,050 square miles in size, it's twice as large as Grand Canyon National Park.
24:25After winter has passed, the salt lake is transformed into a beautiful giant sky-reflecting mirror between September and May.
24:32With salt all the way to the horizon, it creates an illusion of endlessness.
24:36The thin layer of water left over from ice melting creates a shimmering effect of the sky, making it one
24:43of the best places to visit in the world.
24:45The Catambo River in Venezuela might be the stormiest place in the world, with nearly 300 storm days a year.
24:52The lightning storms are so consistent, and they're predicted three months in advance.
24:57During the wet season in October, you might see 30 lightning flashes in a single minute.
25:02At sunset, strong winds flow around the three surrounding mountains, forming storm clouds over the water.
25:08When the water droplets of humid air collide with ice crystals from the cold air, the static charges cause a
25:14lightning storm that happens nearly every night.
25:17Off the southern tip of Japan lies the Yanaguni Formation.
25:22Archaeologists believe that the monument belongs to a fabled Pacific civilization, like Atlantis, that vanished beneath the waves thousands of
25:29years ago.
25:30If it's truly a lost civilization, or just nature having a little fun, this is the site to dive into.
25:36Features inside the structure resemble stonework, like castles, temples, and a stadium, connected by roads, and what seems to be
25:44large walls all the way around.
25:46There are even marks in the stone that appear to show quarry work, faded faces, and rocks sculpted into animal
25:53shapes.
25:53Some scientists believe that the symmetry of the stones is not as straight as reported.
25:58It appears solid rock, rather than carved blocks, weathered down by all the water over many years.
26:05Plitvice Lakes National Park in Croatia is an interconnected chain of waterfalls, the tallest being 230 feet, and underground water
26:13channels, creating natural dams and lakes in such a picturesque environment.
26:18Found in the deep woodlands, surrounded by meadows brimming with wildflowers, brown bears, gray wolves, lynx, deer, and plenty of
26:25rare bird species for bird watchers,
26:27call these 115 square miles of the National Park home.
Comments