Caterpillars drop regularly, like this one on the soil of the test pit. All the test pits were completely filled in, with the original ground on top set aside and then painstakingly replaced in order to return the forest to it’s original condition. By measuring forest type, cover, density and depth, the team hopes to solve mysteries like the age of Lico’s forest. Tropical rainforests store more carbon than any other vegetation on Earth, and the survey here will become part of a global census of carbon, eventually used by the UNFCC to drive international climate policy.