DID LOCKDOWN 'HEAL' NATURE? STUDY SAYS NO
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29 March 2024
Covid brought with it immeasurable hardships and unprecedented lockdowns that were imposed to check the spread of the disease
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With lockdowns began the narrative that it will help nature 'heal'. But a new study disputes that
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A group of biologists found some places experienced an increase in mammal activity, but others saw a decrease
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They used thousands of camera traps deployed around the world to study sightings of animals
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Researchers compared mammal activity for over 300,000 camera days before and during the pandemic across US and Europe
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They found that in human-modified habitats, animal activity actually increased with human activity by 25%
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The study published in Nature Ecology & Evolution said that the activity was more nocturnal
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This suggested that animals sought ways to minimise encounters with people, it added
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The team also found that carnivores increased their presence as our activity decreased
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Overall, the research team detected no global systemic shift in mammal activity during the pandemic
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