PERU
November/December 2020
PERU: One of the keys to the Inca Empire’s prosperity was bird guano harvested from islands off coastal Peru and northern Chile. The waste from seabirds such as cormorants and pelicans was an excellent fertilizer and was transported to the Inca highlands and other less fertile areas to boost agricultural productivity. The Inca even implemented stringent restrictions to safeguard the birds’ breeding grounds, and violations were punishable by death. Researchers say this may be the earliest conservation scheme created by humans to protect an animal species and its natural habitat.
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Poison projectiles, Cortés’ Mexico City abode, Peruvian pelican fertilizer, and solving a Crusader mystery
Turning over an old leaf
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