First use in Europe of a drone to harvest rare plants in a ravine

Between 7 and 11 July, Madeira was the scene of the first use in Europe of the Mamba drone, developed by the Canadian company Outreach Robotics, capable of harvesting plants on inaccessible cliffs. The operation was conducted by the Botany Group of the University of Madeira, in collaboration with the Madeira Operational Command and the Institute of Forests and Nature Conservation, with the participation of specialist Ben Nyberg from the National Tropical Botanical Garden (Hawaii).

The drone, already used in Hawaii to collect unknown species on cliffs, will now be used in Madeira in the same way, allowing for more effective study of some of the region’s rarest endemic plants, which are difficult to access by traditional means.

Although only a few areas were explored in this first mission, the project paves the way for future collection and study campaigns, which are essential for deepening taxonomic and genetic knowledge of Madeira’s flora. Two months later, this innovation is seen as a milestone in strengthening Find out more here.