Geography of South America Great American Interchange. The Andes, likewise a comparatively young and seismically restless mountain range, runs down the western edge of the continent; the land to the east of the northern Andes is largely tropical rain forest, the vast Amazon River basin. The continent also contains drier regions such as eastern Patagonia and the extremely arid Atacama desert. The South American continent also includes various islands, most of which belong to countries on the continent. The Caribbean territories are grouped with North America. The South American nations that border the Caribbean Sea—including Colombia, Venezuela, Guyana, Suriname, and French Guiana—are also known
Land use statistics by country Land use statistics by country This article includes the table with land use statistics by country. Countries are sorted by their total cultivated land area which is a sum of total arable land area and total area of permanent crops. Arable land is a land cultivated for crops like wheat, maize, and rice that are replanted after each harvest; permanent crops land is a land cultivated for crops like citrus, coffee, and rubber that are not replanted after each harvest; this also includes land under flowering shrubs, fruit trees, nut trees, and vines, but excludes land under trees grown for