The great river of southern China, whose delta is one of the most crowded and productive places on Earth.
Length
2,400 km
Source
Yunnan highlands
Mouth
South China Sea
Continent
Asia
Countries
China
Did you know?
The Pearl River Delta is among the largest urban areas in the world, a megacity of over 60 million people.
Little-known fact
It takes its name from a pearl-shaped islet that once sat in the river at Guangzhou.
Highlights
- Great river of southern China
- Feeds a megacity delta
- Named after a pearl-shaped islet
Life in the Pearl River (Zhujiang)
The fish and animals, waterbirds and water plants — including some of the rarest — that this water supports.
Waterbirds
Common kingfisher
A dazzling blue-and-orange dart that plunges from a perch to spear fish in an instant.
Grey heron
A patient, statue-still angler that stalks the shallows of rivers and lakes across the Old World.
Water plants & reeds
Sacred lotus
A revered Asian water plant whose leaves are so water-repellent that dirt rolls straight off them.
Water hyacinth
A beautiful but notorious free-floating weed that can choke entire waterways in a matter of weeks.
Mangrove
Salt-tolerant trees whose stilted roots build the nurseries of the great river deltas.
Interactive · 3D journey
Journey of a river · source → sea
Every river runs the same great journey — from an icy mountain spring, down through gorges and looping meanders, to a wide delta where it meets the sea. Tap a stage to follow the water downstream.
Tip: hover to tilt the valley · tap a stage to float downstream
The Source
Every river begins high up — in a mountain spring, a melting glacier or a boggy upland. The water is cold, clear and fast, tumbling down the steepest ground of its whole journey.
Landforms here