Shellfish collectors in Peru make a living harvesting a special mollusk called the barquillo, a primary ingredient in a world-famous ceviche dish. But hunting the elusive seafood comes at a deadly cost.
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00:01Here in Peru, the search for a seafood delicacy
00:05begins with a motorcycle ride through the desert.
00:12Just a handful of people in the whole country
00:15are skilled enough to scale the towering cliffs.
00:24They're hunting for a special mollusk called barquillo,
00:28found inside coastal rocks where the waves crash.
00:49Barquillos are the main ingredient in a special kind of seafood ceviche
00:54that's made only in the remote town of Warmey,
00:59which has now become a go-to destination for foodies from all over the world.
01:04But what's in it for the men who put their lives on the line
01:09hunting for this elusive sea creature?
01:11About a five-hour drive north of Lima is the small fishing town of Warmey.
01:21Every day, Arminio Lobato de la Cruz
01:25packs up his climbing gear and hits the road.
01:28He's learning from his mentor, Juan Le Gormes,
01:41who has nearly 20 years of experience as a shellfish collector or mariscador.
01:47He's known as El Grande.
01:48Together, they bike for 25 miles till they reach this coastal desert.
01:54I, for example, the first time I went to the acantilado,
01:59I felt a little hot, right?
02:02But my body was a little scared.
02:05I had a little fear around there.
02:08But with time, El Grande says he overcame his fear.
02:12You're independent of yourself.
02:15It's not like a job.
02:16A job that tells you,
02:17come back at the time,
02:18and at the time you're going to go.
02:20They prefer to scale the cliffs the way their ancestors did,
02:25without any formal rock climbing gear.
02:31The men wear hand-woven mesh shoes that don't retain water.
02:35You're literally holding it, right?
02:45They don't try to fall out.
02:49El Grande ties the rope around an iron rod that's hammered into the rock.
02:54This is the only thing that anchors them to these cliffs
02:57that are as high as 1,000 feet.
03:00a thousand feet.
03:02At the beginning, I was a little scared.
03:06I thought I would not return.
03:09Look at this.
03:11But now, I have a habit.
03:15Lobato goes first.
03:18The two men take turns,
03:20rappelling down, using each other for support,
03:23like a pulley system.
03:25You do a lot of strength in the soga.
03:27You have pain in the arms.
03:34The hand hurts you a lot.
03:38You burn the soga.
03:40For several opportunities, I'm going to break my fingers.
03:43Falling rocks and debris make the descent even more challenging.
03:48You don't have to be worried about anything.
03:50Because sometimes, if you're worried about something,
03:53you can have a bad heart.
03:58You have to have your mind closed.
04:02El Grande starts to descend once Lobato stops
04:05at about 300 feet down.
04:09I almost remember it.
04:12That's the amount.
04:16The rope isn't long enough to reach the rocks in one shot.
04:20So they carry more and tie it at different points along the route.
04:31The entire descent takes them about 40 minutes.
04:41Finally, El Grande meets Lobato at a ledge near the ocean.
04:45The water temperature, even in the summer, is around 68 degrees Fahrenheit.
04:50So they put on a thermal suit for insulation.
04:56These cost them about 1,000 Peruvian soles, or about $270.
05:01But they're an essential investment.
05:04December to March are the best months to harvest the barquillos,
05:08because the ocean is relatively calmer.
05:12So when the water retreats during low tide,
05:15they try to pluck as many barquillos as they can.
05:19As you go!
05:21As you go!
05:22When you come to the ground, you get the dirt better than anything else.
05:25Yes!
05:27When you come to the ground, you get the dirt better than anything.
05:29Yes!
05:30And if the water doesn't come with strength, you cover it under the stone and the water passes on you.
05:43So you're protected there and you keep working.
05:47Saludos to me.
05:55Corre, corre, corre.
06:00The barquillos thrive off the algae and seagrass that cover the slippery rocks.
06:08They're just two inches long and blend in.
06:11But the men know exactly what they look like.
06:14They use their hands and sometimes a piece of spring iron to get them off.
06:19Here in Peru, mariscadores were harvesting barquillos as far back as 680, using rafts to reach them.
06:33The exterior shell is made of eight plates that overlap slightly, allowing it to curl up into a ball.
06:41Inside, it has a radula or tongue covered with sharp, tiny teeth that help it eat the algae.
06:45They can live up to 20 years and are a natural source of food for birds, crabs, starfish and more.
06:51Species of this mollusk are also found in Alaska, California, Chile and the Great Barrier Reef.
07:01But today, there are only a dozen mariscadores left in and around Warme who collect the barquillo this way.
07:11Others, like Juan Obet Logimet, rent boats to get to nearby tidal pools.
07:32But that's expensive and much slower.
07:36Mariscadores also say they can access more locations by climbing up and down the cliffs.
07:45But Juan can no longer do that.
07:48Last year, a wave thrashed him on these rocks, permanently injuring his knee.
07:53I turned my body, fell, and I threw it.
07:57I wanted to stop, but the pain was unsupportable.
08:02He uses a different technique to catch the shellfish with special bamboo sticks or kanias.
08:09He attaches an iron hook on one stick to scrape off the barquillo.
08:14And a mesh net on the other to catch it.
08:19This helps him reach deep into the rocks while staying away from the waves.
08:25In the mar, you have to know the currents in which it is in that moment.
08:32Today, the water can be very good.
08:35And tomorrow, it can be a lion.
08:40The accidents that I have had have been strong.
08:47The rotors of bones, the skulls, the tendonitis, the esguince.
08:55Accidents like his are all too common for Mariscadores in Peru, which is one of the world's top five fishing nations.
09:18But the majority of incidents go unreported since the fishing sector is mostly informal.
09:25Today, Lobato and El Grande plucked about 350 barquillos in three hours.
09:50And even ate some of them fresh.
09:54If they're in the shell, they can stay alive for a couple of days.
09:58But Mariscadores often de-shell them so their load is lighter.
10:04Pulling themselves up after a whole day of fishing is exhausting.
10:09And takes the most stamina.
10:11Once the men are back in Huarme, they try to sell the barquillo right away to wholesalers.
10:34It's delicious.
10:35It's a little salad.
10:36It's the flavor of the sea, right?
10:37Juan also delivers barquillos to local fish markets.
10:51He can make up to 500 soles a week, or about $136, depending on his haul.
10:57In this part of Peru, that could pay for a week's worth of groceries for a family of four.
11:04Juan's family also runs a seafood restaurant that serves ceviche, the national dish of Peru.
11:15It's usually a mixture of raw seafood and fish with onions and citrus juice.
11:21But restaurants in Huarme are known for making it with only shellfish.
11:29Foodies from all over the world travel here to try the famous version of ceviche.
11:36And while this is a local treat found in every corner of Huarme, mariscadores like Juan,
12:05feel forgotten.
12:19There are other jobs in the area in mining and agriculture.
12:23But El Grande and Lobato say shellfish hunting is the most lucrative for them right now.
12:29I don't care about the danger, right?
12:31What I care about is that my children are professionals.
12:35My job is to wait for me and make money so that they can study.
12:41I have to hold myself strong and that I don't have to do anything, right?
12:45Because I have to get home well.
12:47well, I don't know because of ten to this day.
12:53I haven't seen some ignorant 걸로 for but because I know,
12:55I have to take three hours back then.
12:57I am always нашем GPS.
13:00I like that so much knowledge.
13:01I like that so often.
13:03I like that so often, as I am sorry.
13:04So this is where people want it to be.
13:06I like that right now.
13:08I am the Catholic court already.