{"id":1597,"date":"2026-06-11T17:24:56","date_gmt":"2026-06-11T16:24:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.farmersforum.ie\/trends\/chernobyl-has-become-a-haven-for-rare-animals-including-przewalskis-horses\/"},"modified":"2026-06-11T17:24:58","modified_gmt":"2026-06-11T16:24:58","slug":"chernobyl-has-become-a-haven-for-rare-animals-including-przewalskis-horses","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.farmersforum.ie\/trends\/chernobyl-has-become-a-haven-for-rare-animals-including-przewalskis-horses\/","title":{"rendered":"Chernobyl Has Become a Haven for Rare Animals, Including Przewalski’s Horses"},"content":{"rendered":"
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On April 26, 1986, Reactor 4 at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant exploded, prompting the evacuation of more than a hundred thousand people and the creation of a vast exclusion zone, which has since evolved into a true sanctuary for wildlife.<\/strong><\/p>\n

A Thriving and Rare Wildlife<\/strong><\/h2>\n

To assess the animal diversity around the site, researchers relied on camera traps. It turned out that the area hosted populations noticeably larger than those in the nearby Drevlianskyi nature reserve and surrounding unprotected zones, and it also stood out for the presence of rare species, such as Przewalski\u2019s horses, lynxes, moose, red deer, raccoon dogs, and brown bears.<\/p>\n

Read also<\/span> For the first time, a great white shark has been filmed on the seabed of the Mediterranean<\/span><\/section>\n

Contrary to what the team expected, higher occurrences of more common species, such as red foxes, renowned for their remarkable adaptability, were not evident, suggesting they are less affected by human activities.<\/p>\n

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Just submitted our latest paper on @NERCscience #Chornobyl wildlife camera trap work \u2013 this one in on wildlife in the Red Forest over the year following an extensive #wildfire which impacted the site in 2016. Fingers crossed & watch this space. pic.twitter.com\/ztQIjBHqXv<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Prof Nick Beresford (@radioecology) October 7, 2022<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Przewalski\u2019s horses constitute a particularly striking example. Once declared extinct in the wild by the late 1960s, they were reintroduced in parts of Ukraine in the late 1990s. In total, more than a thousand photographs of these equids have been taken in the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone since 2016. As with brown bears, there have been no sightings outside of the exclusion zone during this period.<\/p>\n

According to the team, whose work is published in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B<\/em>, this situation could be linked to a recent ecological upheaval. \u201cIt is likely that after the massive wildfires of 2020 and 2021, the lush vegetation that developed on these nutrient-rich soils drawing large numbers of ungulates such as the Przewalski\u2019s horse and the red deer<\/em>,\u201d says Svitlana Kudrenko, the lead author of the new study.<\/p>\n

Read also<\/span> 1,200 kilometers: caribou undertake the world’s longest terrestrial migration<\/span><\/section>\n
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An Accidental Eden: Chornobyl Has Become A Wildlife Refuge For Extremely Rare Animals, Including Przewalski’s Horses.
40 Years after the disaster, new images show how wildlife, including 11 large mammal species, is thriving in the Chornobyl Exclusion Zone. https:\/\/t.co\/bvJQzecGa9<\/p>\n

\u2014 Louisa Pearson (@louisa1000) May 24, 2026<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

The Radiation Question<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Although Kudrenko and colleagues did not investigate the effects of ambient radioactivity, they reference earlier studies that concluded these have only a minimal impact on the zone\u2019s mammal populations.<\/p>\n

In 2024, research even showed that the Chernobyl gray wolves possessed a immune system different from nearby populations, with mutations similar to those seen in humans undergoing radiotherapy, potentially reducing cancer risk.<\/p>\n

Illustrating the exclusion zone\u2019s unique profile, the latest observations also have implications for the global conservation of wildlife. \u201cLike many others, our work highlights the importance of large areas to ensure the persistence of rare species<\/em>,\u201d concludes Kudrenko.<\/p>\n

Read also<\/span> From the size of a golf ball: a cute, tiny blue octopus discovered in the Gal\u00e1pagos<\/span><\/section>\n

Last year, a study concluded that thousands of hectares around Chernobyl could safely be cultivated again.<\/p>\n