Coronavirus – impacts on wildlife. A victory, or a sign that humanity needs to change? | Opinion
COVID-19 has shaped the start of this new decade. Emily GIlford discusses the environmental impacts of lockdown, and the effects it has had on wildlife across the world.
An empty playpark. Photo by Jordan Hopkins, Unsplash.
On the 23rd of March 2020, PM Boris Johnson announced that all UK residents were to stay at home to protect themselves, and the fate of the NHS in what was termed a national ‘lockdown’. Initial restrictions were put in place, limiting human movement with threats of fines for leaving the confines of your own home unless shopping for necessities, a single form of exercise or essential travel to key workplaces.
However, these restrictions did not apply to wildlife. With the world, slightly more silent, and countries across the world predominantly remaining inside, a previously non-existent space was left for wildlife to fill.
Scientific communities have flocked to assess how this period of reduced human mobility could provide us with important insights into human-wildlife interactions and conflicts. A new phrase, “the anthropause”, coined by Christian Rutz and his team encompasses the idea of this phenomenon in a recent scientific publication, referring to “a considerable global slowing of modern human activities”.
Throughout lockdown, unusual wildlife events have been occurring across the planet.
Big cats have been spotted roaming downtown Santiago and in other urban areas, Jackals in daylight traversing Tel Aviv, mountain goats running through Welsh towns, Boars in central Barcelona, deer roaming streets in India and mice dancing around the London underground. Animals have felt the benefits of quieter urban areas and networks, with a noted balance in hedgehog populations across the UK due to the quieter roads.
Jackals have moved from more rural areas in Tel Aviv to abandoned parks to scavenge for food. Photo by Harsh Tank, Unsplash.
There has been a noted decrease in roadkill, with hedgehogs benefitting from reduced human activity. Photo by Piotr Laskawski, Unsplash.
But these strange events are not restricted to land. Dolphins have been seen in active harbours in Italy, and busier oceans in general due to reduced pollution and anthropogenic noise. Less tourism has led to quieter beaches, which in turn has seen a spike in Olive Ridley Turtles visiting and laying eggs across beaches in India. These unusual events could signify how much of impact humanity truly has on fauna across the world.
Emptier beaches have left gaps for wildlife to occupy. Photo by Jennifer Fay, Unsplash.
However, not everything has been so positive. A large number of species appear to rely heavily on human interference, including primates who frequent tourist spots in Thailand, and ducks and other water birds in the UK. These species rely on foraging in urban areas, or direct feeding from humans, and have had to turn to other new food sources with a reduction in anthropogenic feeding. This attraction to locating new food sources could lead to new human-wildlife conflicts.
Primates in Thailand find new food sources, where they usually rely on now non-existent tourism. Photo by Eirik Skarstein, Unsplash.
Waterbirds such as ducks that rely on anthropogenic feeding are suffering due to the lockdown. Duck and duckling photos by Emily Gilford.
Other than the direct impacts that lockdown has had on wildlife, there has also been a surge in people taking part in citizen science, the contribution to science by members of the general public, and engaging with nature, spending more time outside in gardens or local parks. Members of the public are now more easily able to connect with scientific research, which could inspire the next generation of Jane Goodall’s and David Attenborough’s. Attenborough has even mentioned the impacts of lockdown in a recent BBC program - Planet Earth: A Celebration.
Going forward, it is important that we focus on studying and minimising human impacts on animal life and welfare where possible, but try and maintain required contact with species where it might be needed.
You can find out more about the anthropause and the scientists interested in studying more here, and more about these strange events on the links above.
EMILY GILFORD
Emily is a Zoology BSc (Hons) and Ecology MSc graduate from the University of Exeter, currently based in Cornwall. Her interests lie in animal behaviour and blue health. Over the past few years, Emily has managed The Beach Clean Project in Cornwall, connecting people over a mutual love of keeping our coastlines clean. Emily enjoys being out with her camera spotting wildlife and learning as much as she can. Emily is an online article editor and contributor here at Bloom in Doom. Find her on Instagram @emilygilford