New Hawaiian plant, Schiedea waiahuluensis, found using drones on Kauaʻi’s cliffs, highlights drone technology’s role in conservation and research.
A newly discovered species of carnation from Hawaii, Schiedea waiahuluensis, is likely the first plant identified and collected using drone technology.
Researchers utilized drone photography to spot this unknown species growing on steep, inaccessible cliffs in the Waiahulu region of Kauaʻi, an area that had remained unexplored due to its challenging terrain.
Breakthrough in Botanical Research
Published in the open-access journal PhytoKeys, this discovery was made possible through the National Tropical Botanical Garden‘s (NTBG) botanical drone program, which deploys unmanned aircraft to explore remote cliff environments.
In collaboration with Quebec-based Outreach Robotics, NTBG developed ‘the Mamba,’ a remote plant…
