The conquest of nature: animals traveled 73% further during confinement

During the lockdown for him coronavirus unusual images of animals conquering the cities. A new study indicates that this period altered some movement behaviors of the mammalswho traveled an average of 73% further where the measures were stricter.

The research published today by Science on the cover had the participation of a large international team of scientists, among them from the Spanish universities of Oviedo (north) and Huelva (south).

These observations of mammal behavior as a result of reduced traffic and human mobility due to the early 2020 restrictions provide valuable information for future conservation strategies designed to enhance coexistence between humans and wildlife.

During the first wave of covid-19, lockdown measures were applied almost everywhere in the world, drastically reducing human mobility and vehicle traffic.

This “anthropause”as it is called, left unusual images such as pumas walking through the streets of Santiago de Chile, but it was necessary to establish if there really was evidence of a greater presence of animals or if, simply, people paid more attention due to the obligation to be in home.

The team led by Marleen Tucker of the Radboud University of Nijmegen, The Netherlands, compiled GPS tracking data from 76 studies encompassing 2,300 mammals and representing 43 species worldwide.

So they could assess how elephants, giraffes, bears or deer changed their movement behavior, among many others, from February to mid-May 2020, when compared to the same months of the previous year.

Although movements and road-avoidance behavioral responses in lockdowns varied by species and region of the world, the team identified several common effects.

In the case of strict confinements, animals traveled 73% longer distances on average in a 10-day period, suggesting that most mammals in those locations explored more of the landscape when vehicle movement was reduced.

Besides, they got 36% closer to the roadswhich is probably due to the fact that these roads were calmer during periods of strict closure and the animals were less afraid of road traffic or human presence.

In contrast, in areas with less stringent confinement, animals traveled shorter distances, perhaps because people were encouraged to get out into the wild, making those “natural areas were more crowded than before covid-19″according to the also signatory Thomas Mueller, the Goethe University of Frankfurt (Germany).

Thanks to this study, it was possible to observe how human activities constrain animal movement and how they react when these tasks cease.

The study focused, among other places, on human pathways, which not only reduce habitat and limit movement, but can also be a notable source of animal mortality from vehicle collisions.

The research showed that animals can respond directly to changes in human behavior, which, according to Tucker, offers hope for the future, because, in principle, it means that “Making some adjustments in our behavior could have a positive effect on the animals.”

Source: EFE