Is wildlife encroaching because of the pandemic? Experts say no
Weeds sprout through the pavement, predators prowl the back streets and outnumbered humans are prey. It’s a scene from countless post-apocalyptic films and TV shows where the animals have taken over.
In the months people have been sheltering in place to slow the spread of COVID-19, some claim wildlife are encroaching on urban and suburban places where they haven’t been before. But wildlife and animal experts say they’ve always been there. You just weren’t around to see them.
These are often animals searching for food in temporarily empty spaces, said Patrick Snickles, of the Pennsylvania Game Commission.
“We’re not experiencing more complaints, nuisance calls or sightings. Not at all,” he said.
“The only thing that has changed since the social distancing and stayat-home edicts have taken effect is increased human activity in the outdoors. Most wardens across the region are seeing much more human activity on gamelands — hiking, bicycling, wildlife watching.”
In Allegheny County, where road crews maintain 780 miles of roads, there have been fewer wildlife sightings than in previous springs — the season when wild animals are the most visible.
“Our park rangers report that they are actually seeing less wildlife due to the increased human presence in our parks,” said county spokesman Kevin Evanto. “In fact, some of our parks are experiencing record visitation.”
And that means more traffic and litter, he said.
Henry Kacprzyk, a biologist at the Pittsburgh Zoo & PPG Aquarium, says it takes more than a few months for a widespread and enduring change in wildlife population distribution.
“You look at a place like Chernobyl, where it took four or five years [following a meltdown at a nuclear power plant] for the wildlife to overrun the abandoned city. It happens slowly. Here at the zoo, I can see plants growing through the sidewalks because people aren’t walking over it, but it doesn’t mean anything.”
The wildlife population in Pittsburgh is already greater than many people realize. Recent sightings include a black bear in New Sewickley, deer on a university campus in Oakland, red foxes in backyards and wild turkeys on the streets. But officials report no change in wild animal density since people started staying at home.
David Madden, supervisor of the Pittsburgh Animal Care and Control Division, suggested that residents may be seeing more wildlife because they’re not driving as much.
“There’s less chance of people hitting animals with cars because there are fewer people out there,” Mr. Madden said.
If there’s one thing more contagious than a virus, it’s juicy dish on social media. Internationally, reports of COVID-19-related wildlife encroachment are going viral, but many are inaccurate. One viral image shows swans on a canal. The text describes wildlife returning to Venice, Italy, now that the canals are free of pollution and gondola traffic. In truth, swans have always lived on that particular Venetian island.
Another social media post viewed around the world shows Indian elephants sleeping in an agricultural field and reports they broke into a village in China, got drunk on corn wine and fell asleep in a tea garden. Villagers there say it never happened.
Some reports lack context and analysis during an already confusing period. One local posting showed deer on the streets of Millvale and said that deer had “taken over” city streets. At the zoo, Mr. Kacprzyk dismissed that as hyperbole.
“Animals are opportunistic, always looking for food, and, as you know, nature abhors a vacuum,” he said. “This animal activity has always taken place. They may be on the street now when there’s nobody there, but they were always nearby. You just didn’t see them.”
Without scientific analysis of animal encounters, social media viewers may not recognize what’s really going on, Mr. Kacprzyk said.
“I stopped my car when I saw eight deer in front of me. I looked in the rear view mirror and saw wild turkeys crossing behind me,” he said. “I live in Stanton Heights. The point is [wild animals] are living in close proximity to us all the time.”
A recent article in National Geographic explored the phenomenon of wildlife sightings during the pandemic. It cited a study published in Scientific Reports in 2016 that plotted the spread of viral rumors using the same methods that researchers use to track a biological contagion. The story suggested that during a health pandemic and economic insecurity, many people want “news” of a wildlife revival to be true.
“I think people really want to believe in the power of nature to recover,” said Susan Clayton, a professor of psychology and environmental studies at the College of Wooster in Ohio in the article.
“People hope that, no matter what we’ve done, nature is powerful enough to rise above it.”