The Chernobyl nuclear disaster was obviously a terrible event, but because the area has been free of humans for decades, wildlife in the region has been thriving. Now it seems the same is happening in Japan where a nuclear disaster took place on March 11, 2011.
Documented by researchers from the University of Georgia, a new study has found that, nearly a decade after the Fukushima nuclear disaster, wildlife populations are abundant in the area’s evacuation zones.
Using photo data from 106 camera sites, the team observed at least 80 individual species, including everything from wild boars and Japanese hares to macaques and red fox.
What’s also interesting to note is that species that are often in conflict with people, especially wild boar, were mostly seen on camera in human-evacuated areas or zones; over 26,000 wild boar images were taken in uninhabited areas, compared to some 13,000 in restricted and 7,000 in inhabited zones. This suggests that, without humans around, the wildlife seems to be doing all right.
To take a peek at the wholesome footage, look no further.
