Effective integration of drone technology for mapping and managing palm species in the Peruvian Amazon
Remote sensing data could increase the value of tropical forest resources by helping to map economically important species. However, current tools lack precision over large areas, and remain inaccessible to stakeholders. Here, we work with the Protected Areas Authority of Peru to develop and implement precise, landscape-scale, species-level methods to assess the distribution and abundance of economically important arborescent Amazonian palms using field data, visible-spectrum drone imagery and deep learning. We compare the costs and time needed to inventory and develop sustainable fruit harvesting plans in two communities using traditional plot-based and our drone-based methods. Our approach detects individual palms of three species, even when densely clustered (average overall score, 74%), with high accuracy and completeness for Mauritia flexuosa (precision; 99% and recall; 81%). Compared to plot-based methods, our drone-based approach reduces costs per hectare of an inventory of Mauritia flexuosa for a management plan by 99% (USD 5 ha<sup>-1</sup> versus USD 411 ha<sup>-1</sup>), and reduces total operational costs and personnel time to develop a management plan by 23% and 36%, respectively. These findings demonstrate how tailoring technology to the scale and precision required for management, and involvement of stakeholders at all stages, can help expand sustainable management in the tropics.
Authors
- Silvana Di Liberto Porles
- Ander Dávila Díaz (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4438-2840)
- Ximena Tagle Casapia (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4152-2051)
- Harm Bartholomeus (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1905-7678)
- Rodolfo Cárdenas Vigo (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4409-6820)
- Gerardo Flores Llampazo (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6026-0275)
- Frederick C. Draper (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7568-0838)
- Lourdes Falen (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8490-3255)
- Martin Herold (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0246-6886)
- Dennis Del Castillo Torres (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0852-5197)
- Diego Marcos (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5607-4445)
- Eurídice N. Honorio Coronado (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2314-590X)
- Gordon Mitchell (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0093-4519)
- Pedro E. PÉREZ-PEÑA (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0570-4213)
- Timothy R. Baker (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3251-1679)
- Nandin-Erdene Tsenbazar
- Giovanna Chipana (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2616-8090)
- Ernesto Fernández Gamarra
- Susan Palacios
Institutions
- University of Leeds (GB)
- University of Liverpool (GB)
- University of St Andrews (GB)
- Université de Montpellier (FR)
- Instituto de Investigaciones de la Amazonía Peruana (PE)
- GFZ Helmholtz Centre for Geosciences (DE)
- University of Brescia (IT)
- Wageningen University & Research (NL)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Nature Communications
- Published
- 2025-04-22
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-58358-5
- Citations
- 5
- Primary Topic
- Oil Palm Production and Sustainability
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 8.58
Funders
- Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation
- World Wildlife Fund
- Agence Nationale de la Recherche
- Consejo Nacional de Ciencia, Tecnología e Innovación Tecnológica
- Natural Environment Research Council