The Waini River is a river in the Barima-Waini

Barima-Waini

Barima-Waini is a region of Essequibo, Guyana, a territory in dispute by Guyana and Venezuela, located in the northwest of the country. It covers an area of 20,339 km²...

 region of northern Guyana

Guyana

Guyana , officially the Co-operative Republic of Guyana, previously the colony of British Guiana, is a sovereign state on the northern coast of South America that is culturally part of the Anglophone Caribbean. Guyana was a former colony of the Dutch and of the British...

. It flows into the Atlantic Ocean

Atlantic Ocean

The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's oceanic divisions. With a total area of about , it covers approximately 20% of the Earth's surface and about 26% of its water surface area...

 near the border with Venezuela

Venezuela

Venezuela , officially called the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela , is a tropical country on the northern coast of South America. It borders Colombia to the west, Guyana to the east, and Brazil to the south...

. The upper portion of the river flows through the Guianian moist forests

Tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests

Tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests , also known as tropical moist forests, are a tropical and subtropical forest biome....

, while the lower Waini river flows through the eastern extent of the vast Orinoco Delta swamp forests before it empties into the sea.

Almond Beach is located at the mouth of the Waini River. It is one of the most important nesting areas for four of the seven species of marine turtle

Turtle

Turtles are reptiles of the order Testudines , characterised by a special bony or cartilaginous shell developed from their ribs that acts as a shield...

s in the world. It is the only place in Guyana that has a large stretch of intact mangrove forests, brackish water and coastal swamp communities.

Santa Rosa

Santa Rosa, Guyana

Santa Rosa is a community in the Barima-Waini region of northern Guyana, located at . Its population is approximately 10,000 .Santa Rosa is the largest Amerindian village in Guyana. This predominantly Arawak village is located on the Moruka River, 29 km from its mouth...

 is an Amerindian community on the Waini River.