From creatures great and small, all around the world wild animals are taking advantage of the quieter cities, cleaner air and still waters to reclaim their natural roaming grounds from humans.
In the UK, the official lockdown was announced on 23rd March and only a week later, a herd of mountain goats took over the quiet town of Llandudno in Wales. The curious Kashmiri goats took advantage of the abandoned streets to snack on people’s hedges and flowers. You can watch the video here.
Credit: Andrew Stuart
Over 160 miles away at Raglan Farm Park in Monmouthshire, South Wales, a flock of sheep and lambs decided to have some fun and start playing in an empty playground. They got to grips with the roundabout quickly and seemed to be thoroughly enjoying themselves. You can watch the video here.
Credit: Media Wales
A little further afield in Venice, Italy, clear canal waters revealed seaweed, crabs and shoals of fish seen for the first time in many years. Cormorants have also returned to dive for the fish they can see. As a city that is used to around 20 million tourists a year with consistent heavy boat traffic on its canals, locals are now enjoying the natural beauty and stillness that Venice has to offer.
At the other end of the food chain, Richard Sowry a ranger from South Africa’s Kruger National Park has taken incredible photos of a pride of lions sunbathing on the road, which would normally be busy with tourists. Richard said he usually only sees big cats on the roads at night.
Credit: Richard Sowry
It is not just a change in animal and plant life sightings that we have experienced since lockdown began. There has also been an increase in air quality across the globe as factories and roads are closed, greatly reducing emissions. Satellite images have shown an amazing decrease in the concentration of nitrogen dioxide, a key component in air pollution, across major cities and towns.
Credit: SKY NEWS: The average nitrogen dioxide concentrations from air pollution across France and Spain in March (L) and March 14 to 25, 2020
Now it’s time for you to get involved. The 22nd April was the 50th Anniversary of Earth Day and all around the world people are making small commitments and actions to help support the environment. All of these activities will add up to make a big difference.
So, why not become a citizen scientist during your daily outdoor activity or in your garden and help continue to support nature now and in the future?
The National Geographic has lots of ideas for how you can get involved such as observing wildlife and adding your observations to a global database of biodiversity to support local and global research projects. You could help by counting and recording the different types of butterflies, bees, bugs and birds and perhaps even mountain goats if they happen to venture into your garden.