The Guiana Shield is one of the three cratons of the South American Plate. It is a 1.7 billion-year-old Precambrian geological formation in northeast South America that forms a portion of the northern coast. The higher elevations on the shield are called the Guiana Highlands, which is where the table-like mountains called tepuis are found. The Guiana Highlands are also the source of some of the world's most well-known waterfalls such as Angel Falls, Kaieteur Falls and Cuquenan Falls.
The oilbird, locally known as the guácharo, is a bird species found in the northern areas of South America including the Caribbean island of Trinidad. It is the only species in the genus Steatornis, the family Steatornithidae, and the order Steatornithiformes. Nesting in colonies in caves, oilbirds are nocturnal feeders on the fruits of the oil palm and tropical laurels. They are the only nocturnal flying fruit-eating birds in the world. They forage at night, with specially adapted eyesight. However, they navigate by echolocation in the same way as bats, one of the few birds to do so. They produce a high-pitched clicking sound of around 2 kHz that is audible to humans.
A tepui, or tepuy, is a table-top mountain or mesa found in South America, especially in Venezuela and western Guyana. The word tepui means "house of the gods" in the native tongue of the Pemon, the indigenous people who inhabit the Gran Sabana.
Auyán-tepui, also spelt Ayan, is a tepui in Bolívar state, Venezuela. It is the most visited and one of the largest tepuis in the Guiana Highlands, with a summit area of 666.9 km2 (257.5 sq mi) and an estimated slope area of 715 km2 (276 sq mi).
Mount Roraima is the highest of the Pacaraima chain of tepuis or plateaux in South America. It is located at the junction of Brazil, Guyana and Venezuela. A characteristic large flat-topped mountain surrounded by cliffs 400–1,000 m (1,300–3,300 ft) high. The highest point of Mount Roraima is located on the southern edge of the cliff at an altitude of 2,810 m (9,220 ft) in Venezuela, and another protrusion at an altitude of 2,772 m (9,094 ft) at the junction of the three countries in the north of the plateau is the highest point in Guyana. The name Mount Roraima came from the native Pemon people. Roroi in the Pemon language means "blue-green", and ma means "great".
Oreophrynella, commonly known as bush toads, is a genus of true toads native to the tepuis of southern Venezuela and adjacent Guyana. The distribution of some species is restricted to a couple of tepuis or even a single tepui, as in the case of Oreophrynella weiassipuensis, which occurs on Wei-Assipu-tepui.
The Guayana Region is an administrative region of eastern Venezuela.
Heliamphora heterodoxa is a species of marsh pitcher plant native to Venezuela and adjacent Guyana. It was first discovered in 1944 on the slopes interlinking Ptari-tepui and Sororopan-tepui and formally described in 1951.
Heliamphora nutans is a species of marsh pitcher plant native to the border area between Venezuela, Brazil and Guyana, where it grows on several tepuis, including Roraima, Kukenán, Yuruaní, Maringma, and Wei Assipu. Heliamphora nutans was the first Heliamphora to be described and is the best known species.
Oreophrynella weiassipuensis is a species of toads in the family Bufonidae. It is only known from Wei-Assipu-tepui, a tepui on the border between Brazil and Guyana. The holotype was collected in 2000 by a speleological expedition to Wei-Assipu-tepui. No other specimens are known. It is possible that it is present in other localities, but most species of Oreophrynella are endemic to a single mountain.
Cerro Marahuaca, also spelled Marahuaka, is a tepui in Amazonas state, Venezuela. It has an elevation of 2,832 metres (9,291 ft) above sea level and is the second-highest mountain of the entire Guayana Shield. Cerro Marahuaca shares a common base with the much larger Cerro Duida and together they form the Duida–Marahuaca Massif. Both tepuis are located entirely within the bounds of Duida–Marahuaca National Park.
The natural range of the carnivorous plant genus Heliamphora is restricted to the southern Venezuelan states of Amazonas and Bolívar, and to adjacent portions of northern Brazil and western Guyana, an area corresponding to the western part of the Guayana Shield. These plants are largely confined to the summits and foothills of the sandstone table-top mountains of the region, known as tepuis.
The Chimantá Massif is a highly fragmented complex of tepuis in Bolívar state, Venezuela. The massif comprises around 11 tepuis and has a total summit area of 615 km2 (237 sq mi) and an estimated slope area of 915 km2 (353 sq mi). It is divided in two by the Río Tírica, with the northern section being both larger and higher. The massif is notable for its high species richness and for its varied habitat types. It reaches an elevation of 2,698 metres (8,852 ft) on its highest peak, Murey-tepui. The massif is situated entirely within the bounds of Canaima National Park. It hosts extensive cave systems, including the world's largest known quartzite cave, Cueva Charles Brewer, named after discoverer Charles Brewer-Carías. The processes behind their speleogenesis are the subject of some debate.
Uei-tepui, also known as Wei-tepui, Cerro El Sol or Serra do Sol is a tepui on the border between Brazil and Venezuela. It may be considered the southernmost member of the Eastern Tepuis chain.
Angasima-tepui, also known as Adanta, Adankasima or Adankachimö, is a tepui in Bolívar state, Venezuela. A relatively isolated peak, both it and nearby Upuigma-tepui lie just south of the vast Chimantá Massif, from which they are separated by the Río Aparurén valley. Amurí-tepui, the closest member of the Chimantá Massif, is only 8 kilometres (5.0 mi) from Angasima-tepui.
The Eastern Tepuis, also known as the Roraima–Ilú range, is a mountain chain stretching for some 60 kilometres (37 mi) along the border between Guyana, Venezuela and, to a small extent, Brazil. It runs in a northwesterly direction from the tripoint of these countries, closely following the Guyana–Venezuela border, with a single major peak (Uei-tepui) to the south, on the Brazil–Venezuela border. Moving northwest from Uei-tepui (2,150 m), the main summits of this chain are Roraima-tepui (2,810 m), Kukenán-tepui (2,650 m), Yuruaní-tepui (2,400 m), Wadakapiapué-tepui (2,000 m), Karaurín-tepui (2,500 ), Ilú-tepui (2,700 m), and Tramen-tepui. The minor peak of Wei-Assipu-tepui lies entirely outside Venezuela, on the border between Brazil and Guyana. Additionally, there are a number of minor plateaus which form a chain between Uei-tepui and Roraima-tepui. Ilú- and Tramen-tepuis are often treated together since they are joined by a common base.
Yuruaní-tepui, also known by the Pemón name Iwalkarima, Iwalecalima or Iwarkárima, is a tepui of the Eastern Tepuis chain primarily situated in Venezuela, while part of the eastern ridge stretches across the border with Guyana and into the contested Guayana Esequiba region. It has an elevation of around 2,400 metres (7,900 ft), the high plateau being located entirely within Venezuela, and a summit area of 4.38 km2 (1.69 sq mi). It lies just east of the much smaller Wadakapiapué-tepui. This Tepui is not located in the Canaima National Park unlike most other Tepuis in the area.
The Ilú–Tramen Massif is a tepui massif in Bolívar state, Venezuela. It is the northernmost member of the Eastern Tepuis chain and comprises two major plateaus: the larger Ilú-tepui to the south and Tramen-tepui to the north, all close to the border with neighboring Guyana. With a maximum elevation of around 2,700 metres (8,900 ft), Ilú-tepui is the taller of the two peaks. Both tepuis have open, rocky summit plateaus, with a combined summit area of 5.63 km2 (2.17 sq mi). They lie just north of Karaurín-tepui.
Maringma-tepui, also written Mount Maringma and historically known as Mount Marima, is a small tepui of the Pacaraima Mountains in Cuyuni-Mazaruni, Guyana. It is known as Malaima-tepui in the local Akawaio language. Most published sources place it just inside Guyanese territory, very close to the border with Brazil, and around 17 kilometres (11 mi) east of Roraima-tepui. However, the mountain remains the subject of considerable toponymic confusion and its name has been applied to at least one other nearby peak.
Pristimantis jamescameroni is a species of frog belonging to the family Strabomantidae. It is an orange-brown coloured small frog reported so far only from the Aprada-tepui, a table-top mountain in Bolívar state, Venezuela. It was discovered in June 2012 and formally described in October 2013 by Belgian biologist Philippe J. R. Kok at the Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences and Vrije Universiteit Brussel. The species was named after the Hollywood filmmaker James Cameron, in recognition of his efforts in environmental awareness, and in addition to his public promotion of veganism as a way of animal conservation. Due to its restricted occurrence, the species could be classified as "endangered" according to the criteria of the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.
