The Covid19 pandemic has made life difficult for human beings worldwide, with many people forced to stay home and many economic activities forced to shut down. Less Human activity has meant less pollution on the environment, which is good news for mother nature. From distant mountain peaks emerging for the first time in years to animals on the verge of extinction breeding in record numbers, mother nature has been one of the greatest beneficiaries of the Covid19 prevention measures. Here is a look at the 10 most eye-catching sights of nature recovering.
Penguins in The Streets of Cape Town
That is right; penguins strolled the streets of one of Africa’s most populous cities. While Cape Town is no stranger to penguins, they don’t walk the streets because of human activity. South Africa recorded the highest number of infections in Africa by mid-2020, prompting the government to impose strict lockdown rules, which meant there were no people in the streets. The deserted streets encouraged the rare birds to venture further from the sea and tour human residences taking a stroll in the streets for what was largely viewed as the ‘return of the penguins.’
Record Hatching of The Endangered Olive Ridley Turtles in Mexico
Turtles have been the greatest beneficiaries of the Covind19 pandemic measures as many beaches worldwide have been left vacant. No tourists mean less pollution and, most importantly, a serene environment for turtles to hatch. Olive Ridley turtles, one of the most endangered globally, are the focus of conservation by the Seri community of Sonora, Mexico.
The community picks hatched turtles on the beach and helps them into the water, with most numbers never getting past 500 over the years. Considering the danger faced by baby turtles, most of these end up dying at sea, and the species’ population hadn’t seen much improvement for years until 2020 when a record 2250 turtles hatched on the coast. The record number is associated with the absence of human activity, which boosted the number of hatched turtles and, with it, a bright future for the cute turtles.
Increased Flamingo Numbers in Mumbai
Flamingos are one of the greatest tourist attractions on lakes worldwide, but the visitors tend to scare the pink birds away. With Covid19 lockdowns forcing people indoors, the birds came out in their numbers painting lakes and beaches pink all over the world. The greatest spectacle was in Mumbai, India, where a flock of over 150,000 flamingos descended in March 2020, a huge increase from the previous numbers ever recorded in the area. The increase was also recorded in other Flamingo nesting and feeding areas around the world as the big birds enjoyed the free beaches.
Wild Boar Getting Bold Enough to Enter People’s Homes in Israel
Wild animals in city streets with human traffic is always a major concern since the brushes result in injury and sometimes death, mostly on the wild animals. Every animal’s death is sad since most of them are usually out only looking for something to eat. With fewer cars on the roads and fewer people in the streets, animals, including boars and wild goats, were spotted in streets in different places worldwide.
In the Israeli city of Haifa, record wild boar populations were seen in the streets looking for food in rubbish bins. It led to increased concern from some residents who felt the visits would continue even after the pandemic, but some residents thought it was alright and even fed the boar. Feeding them is not the best idea, though, as human interference affects animal behaviour unpredictably.
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Dolphins Repopulating Turkish Ports
The Bosphorus Strait in Turkey is the main link between the Mediterranean and the Black Sea and often full of activity with lots of ships and boats and often covered in Oil. The human activity on the strait meant that dolphins don’t get to swim as close to the shores as the city residents would love to see until the coronavirus lockdown was implemented. For the first time in years, Bosphorus residents saw dolphins close to the shoreline, and many even managed to photograph them from their windows as they took advantage of the absence of boats and ships.
Clear Photos Taken From Space
China was the first country to impose the strictest lockdowns as a measure to carb Covid19, and with that came some unexpected benefits. Fog and smoke in China’s most industrialized cities usually prevent visibility. The fog grows so thick sometimes that visibility is hindered, forcing roads to be closed. In 2019 alone, China was estimated to have emitted 40 Megatons of Nitrogen Dioxide, a major pollutant from cars and factories that burn fossil fuels, but 2020 has seen a huge drop in the emissions. Similar drops were recorded in New York, London, and New Delhi with improved visibility, allowing some key structures in the cities to be seen from space for the first time in years.
Wild Goats Take Over Llandudno, Wales
Llandudno is a small coastal town in Wales where wild goats usually grace the streets during bad weather but never in large numbers. The Great Orme Kashmiri goats are super-playful and always welcome visitors in the streets, but they weren’t expected to colonize the town one day. During the pandemic, as people were forced indoors, the herd took over the streets in numbers with their young ones eating at people’s hedges. Apart from a few complaints of destroyed flowerbeds, the goats offered great entertainment for locked down families.
Cancellation Of The Africa Big Game Hunting Season
There are many arguments supporting and against trophy hunting in Africa, which is the greatest threat to elephant and lion populations after poaching. Governments argue that they need the money paid by hunters to pay for the conservation projects. Animal rights activists argue that the practice is inhumane and outdated and that money from tourism alone is more than enough to pay for the conservation of lions, rhinos, and elephants in Africa.
However, the coronavirus pandemic meant that no one was crossing borders and definitely not to go shoot animals. The hunting period in Botswana and Kenya was cancelled, giving the beautiful animals a chance to breathe. Elephant numbers have increased in many countries across Africa as well because of reduced human interference and killings.
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Clear Canals In Venice and Milan
Venice, one of the world’s oldest cities, also happens to be one of the most polluted thanks to human activity. Boats and ferries pollute the canals making it impossible for marine life to survive, and even when they do, you wouldn’t spot them because the water is always blackened.
Italy’s strict lockdown orders meant fewer people visiting the ports, which also meant no boats, something marine life in Venice hasn’t experienced in decades. Photos emerged online of clear canals with fish and swans enjoying the clean canals. It was one good news out of one of the worst affected countries in the world.
The Baby Bass Boom in Ontario
The Bass is one of the biggest victims of sportfishing in North America. According to researches of breeding patterns over the last 30 years, it was observed that anglers distract fathers from the nests where they protect the eggs from predators. In 2020, with most anglers staying home and the US-Canada border closed, Papa Basses were left to man their nests until hatching with no disruption from anglers leading to the tripling of the number of surviving babies from 2019.
One research by David Philip, a conservationist recorded 414,000 surviving babies in his research zone, up from 124,000 in 2019, an observation believed to have replicated all over North America. The impact of that boom is expected to rejuvenate the population of Bass for the next 15 years.
