Local rock climbers rescue Portugal’s rarest plants on 120m cliffs.
A global rewilding initiative is protecting biodiversity and rewilding nature with community engagement.
In the 1900s, ice plant, an invasive succulent species, was introduced in Portugal to prevent erosion. It spreads aggressively, pushing out Portugal’s native cliffside species.
In the stunning Cabo Espichel, ice plant is endangering two rare local plant species (Convolvulus fernandesii and Euphorbia pedroi).
These plants grow on cliffs up to 120m high, making them dangerous to reach and hard to study. Mossy Earth uses drones and 3D maps to locate the endemic species and plan ice plant removal.
Local rock climbers and cavers step in to help.
They’ve helped Mossy Earth remove large patches of ice plant by hand, stopping the invasion before it spreads further.
By working directly with the local community, the project has created a sense of ownership and has helped raise awareness about aspects of biodiversity that are easily neglected.
Mossy Earth is using Restor as a platform to explore remote sensing data when designing landscape-scale restoration strategies.
Mossy Earth and Restor share a passion for the outdoors and the preservation of our natural world. To get a feel for what they do, you can browse their projects on Restor.
