Aguaje palms flourish along an oxbow lake of the Amazon River south of Iquitos, Peru.

Aguaje generates more income than any other wild fruit in the Peruvian Amazon. As logging and other pressures rise across the region, experts say it's important to understand the Amazon's wealth of diversity, not just the value of its timber.

But sustainable harvesting of fruit trees is necessary for aguaje to nourish local economies without harming forests.