How paramotorists are helping scientists reach Peru's most inaccessible desert oases
To study endangered species in the remote Peruvian lomas, researchers are taking to the skies. This video follows a Kew Science expedition using Brazilian paramotorists to navigate fragile, fog-fed ecosystems without leaving a trace.
In the largely unexplored Lomas de Amara y Ullujaya, scientists are using powered paragliders to access habitats that are otherwise unreachable. The mission, supported in part by the National Geographic Society, involves a team of Kew researchers—Justin, Carolina, and Oli—working alongside Peruvian scientists and Brazilian paramotorists (S1:p1).
The goal is to recover and study rare plants, such as the poorly researched perennial Tillandsia, from these delicate oases (S2:p2). By using paramotors instead of four-by-four vehicles, the team can collect samples for DNA analysis while reducing carbon dioxide emissions and minimizing physical damage to the environment (S2:p3, S2:p4). The paramotorists are even trained in botanical sampling to identify and tag specimens during flight (S2:p3).
Source: Extreme botany: Daring paramotorists soar across Peru desert to collect threatened plants | Kew
