{"id":29101,"date":"2026-09-23T16:29:35","date_gmt":"2026-09-23T22:29:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.landuum.com\/interventions\/designed-to-fly-the-aerodynamics-of-dry-forest-seeds\/"},"modified":"2026-09-23T16:29:35","modified_gmt":"2026-09-23T22:29:35","slug":"designed-to-fly-the-aerodynamics-of-dry-forest-seeds","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.landuum.com\/en\/interventions\/designed-to-fly-the-aerodynamics-of-dry-forest-seeds\/","title":{"rendered":"Designed to fly: the aerodynamics of dry forest seeds"},"content":{"rendered":"

Magali Mart\u00ednez Cort\u00e9s invites us to discover <\/span>Designed to fly: the aerodynamics of dry forest seeds<\/b>, a text about the dry season, when the leaves announce the change and the branches become an exhibition of geometries. The force of the wind lifts the seed, and its thrust carries it toward distant horizons. In each traveling seed, the future of the dry forest is safeguarded.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Entering the dry forest of the Mexican Pacific for the first time was the beginning of a journey that has only led me to venture ever deeper into it. The exuberance of the dry forest is discreet, the latency, the most effective and evident of its survival strategies.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Flores rosas, vainas de viento\/ Pink flowers, wind pods
Fotograf\u00eda\/Photography: Magali Mart\u00ednez Cort\u00e9s<\/p><\/div>\n

Low-growing trees with ornate, exfoliating bark; numerous thorny shrubs overlapping one another; globular and columnar cacti; fleeting herbaceous plants and vines weaving their way through everything from the vegetation of this tropical dry ecosystem, which harbors great diversity and endemism.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Exuberancia de la selva seca\/ Exuberance of the dry forest
Fotograf\u00eda\/Photography: Magali Mart\u00ednez Cort\u00e9s<\/p><\/div>\n

At the onset of the dry season, temperatures rise, and the vegetation begins to enter dormancy. The leaves reveal the nuances of this transformation; plants pause their greenness, and the forest becomes a canvas of ochre brushstrokes. Little by little, the foliage falls from the branches, transforming the ground into a carpet of leaf litter that crunches with the slightest movement.<\/span><\/p>\n

At this point, the energy contained within the plant\u2019s depths is released in multicolored floral pulses that burst forth from the bare stems. Soon, the branches become an exhibition of surreal geometries and forms. Woody capsules\u2014round, elongated, ornate, and twisted\u2014hang from the branches: these are the fruits, strange contraptions where the seed forms and is stored.<\/span><\/p>\n

Woody capsules\u2014round, elongated, ornate, and twisted\u2014hang from the branches: these are the fruits, strange contraptions where the seed forms and is stored.<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

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Geometr\u00eda entre ramas\/ Geometry between branches
Fotograf\u00eda\/Photography: Jos\u00e9 Manuel D\u00edaz Dom\u00ednguez<\/p><\/div>\n

The sun\u2019s rays desiccate the fruits, a necessary condition for the dehiscence lines to open and the seeds to begin their dance with the wind. The most sophisticated aerodynamic structures are thus revealed: feathers, membranes, and filaments of remarkable lightness and mechanical strength that function as wings and parachutes. An interplay of physical forces and a precise balance between symmetry, form, and structure are the keys to executing an efficient vegetal flight plan.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Semillas paracaidistas\/ Parachute seeds
Fotograf\u00eda\/Photography: Karina Madrid Espinosa<\/p><\/div>\n

The force of the wind lifts the seed, and its momentum carries it away, distancing it from the mother plant. With their wings and parachutes, they withstand, glide, float, and spin upon the currents with the greatest possible lightness, traveling toward distant horizons; in essence, they are tenacious conquerors of new territories.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Al ritmo del viento\/ To the rhythm of the wind
Fotograf\u00eda\/Photography: Jos\u00e9 Manuel D\u00edaz Dom\u00ednguez<\/p><\/div>\n

Undoubtedly, within each traveling seed lies the future of the dry forest: small masterpieces of natural engineering that entrust their legacy to the wind; architects of patience, they await the arrival of the rains to awaken and unfold their natural essence.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Escapismo vegetal\/ Vegetal escapism
Fotograf\u00eda\/Photography: Xochipilli Vergara Loeza<\/p><\/div>\n

Workshop profile:\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n

Verticilo is a landscape and conservation studio based in Puerto Escondido, Oaxaca. It specializes in in situ integration, ecosystem design, and research on the propagation of native coastal vegetation.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Magali Mart\u00ednez Cort\u00e9s invites us to discover Designed to fly: the aerodynamics of dry forest seeds, a text about the dry season, when the leaves announce the change and the branches become an exhibition of geometries. The force of the wind lifts the seed, and its thrust carries it toward distant horizons. In each traveling […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":493,"featured_media":29100,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_uf_show_specific_survey":0,"_uf_disable_surveys":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-29101","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-interventions"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t