Effective integration of drone technology for mapping and managing palm species in the Peruvian Amazon.

ABSTRACT: 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%)

SUBMITTER: Tagle Casapia X 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12015439 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature