Mekong River facts
While investigating facts about Mekong River Cruise and Mekong River Map, I found out little known, but curios details like:
The Laotian rock rat, deemed extinct for 11 million years, was rediscovered in Laos along the Mekong river being sold as meat at a local street market in 2005
how long is the mekong river?
The Mekong River has more large fish species than any other river in the world, including the giant river carp, the Giant Pangasius, the Siamese Giant Carp, the Mekong Giant Catfish, and the Mekong Freshwater Stingray.
What is the mekong river used for?
In my opinion, it is useful to put together a list of the most interesting details from trusted sources that I've come across answering what animals live in the mekong river. Here are 26 of the best facts about Mekong River Commission and Mekong River Parksville I managed to collect.
what countries does the mekong river flow through?
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The Mekong River region is considered to be the second most diverse in the world, following the Amazon River.
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The Mekong River's source is the Lasagongma Spring on the Tibetan Plateau in China.
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90% of the plastic in the ocean comes from 10 rivers: The Yangtze, Indus, Yellow, Hai, Nile, Ganges, Pearl, Heilong, Niger, and Mekong rivers
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The Mekong River's watershed (area of land drained by the river) is approximately 307,000 square miles in size, which in turn results in the discharge of approximately 110 cubic miles of water each year into the South China Sea.
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The Mekong Sub-region is home to 430 mammal species, 1,200 bird species, 800 reptile species, 20,000 plant species, and at least 850 fish species.
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The Mekong River flows through several countries including China, Burma, Laos, Cambodia, Thailand, and Vietnam, before discharging into the South China Sea.
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Today there are approximately 60,000 people living in the Mekong River's basin.
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The Mekong River flows through many cities including Vientiane, Luang Prabang, Savannakhet, and Can Tho.
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The earliest civilization known along the Mekong River dates to the 1st century A.D. however Europeans did not explore the river until 1540 when Antonio de Faria arrived from Portugal.
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Vietnamese farmers rely on the Mekong River for 50% of the water used for irrigation.
Why mekong river is brown?
You can easily fact check why is the mekong river so important to southeast asia by examining the linked well-known sources.
There are many rivers that flow into the South China Sea including Pasig River, Pampanga River, Pahang River, Rajang River, Mekong River, Red River, Jiulong River, Min River, and Pearl River.
The Mekong River's flood season usually occurs between July and October.
Approximately 50% of the Mekong River's sediment comes from the Upper Basin. The Upper Basin only accounts for 24% of the Mekong River's total watershed, but soil erosion in this region is the reason behind the high percentage of sediment it contributes to the river.
Cambodia is highly dependent upon the Mekong River for survival. 80% of the protein intake in their diet is derived from fish from the Mekong River.
The world's largest inland fishery is located in the Mekong River Basin.
When is the best time to cruise the mekong river?
Every year on the Mekong River glowing balls naturally rise from the water and travel a couple of hundred meters into the air. They are known as Naga fireballs and locals believe they are caused by Phaya Naga, a giant serpent believed to live in the river.
How deep is the mekong river?
90% of the plastic in the oceans come from just 10 rivers. 8 are in Asia and 2 are in Africa.There are the Yangtze, Indus, Yellow, Hai He, Ganges, Pearl, Amur and Mekong in Asia and the Nile and the Niger in Africa
The Mekong River's main tributaries include Nam Khan, Tha, Nam Ou, Mun, Tonle Sap, Kok, and Ruak.
The Mekong River has several names with different meanings. The Chinese call it "Lancang Jiang" which means "Turbulent River". The Thai and Lao call it "Mae Nam Kong" which means "Mother Water". The Vietnamese call it "Cuu Long" meaning "New Dragons".
The Mekong River has many uses to modern man including irrigation, domestic water, industrial water, transportation, fisheries, and power generation.
In Yunnan, China, three rivers that run almost parallel separated by 85km at the narrowest point, diverge into the Salween, Mekong and Yangtze rivers, emptying into the Indian Ocean, South China Sea and East China Sea respectively.
