Five Mysteries Uncovered By Google Earth

Published December 1, 2011
Updated August 22, 2017

Mount Mabu, Mozambique

Mount Mabu Google Maps Mozambique

War-torn and geographically treacherous, Mozambique provides numerous obstacles for explorers.

But thanks to Google Earth, a British scientist at Kew Royal Botanic Gardens, Julian Bayliss, stumbled upon the magnificent acres of rainforest in Mount Mabu – an area that had hitherto been uncharted. In 2008, a group of scientists embarked on an expedition and ended up finding over a hundred new species – plants, birds, butterflies, monkeys, snakes – in just three weeks.

Chameleon

YOSHIKAZU TSUNO/AFP/Getty ImagesA type of pygmy chameleon, similar to the one above, was among the new species discovered in the forests of Mount Mabu.

Mount Mabu was well known to locals in Mozambique, but because of it’s accidental discovery by outsiders it is nicknamed the “Google Forest.”

In 2009, the government of Mozambique announced that it would take measures to protect the forest from logging because several species of birds found there are classified as globally threatened.

author
All That's Interesting
author
A New York-based publisher established in 2010, All That's Interesting brings together subject-level experts in history, true crime, and science to share stories that illuminate our world.
editor
John Kuroski
editor
John Kuroski is the editorial director of All That's Interesting. He graduated from New York University with a degree in history, earning a place in the Phi Alpha Theta honor society for history students. An editor at All That's Interesting since 2015, his areas of interest include modern history and true crime.