CHERNOBYL, Ukraine (AP) — Wildlife is thriving again four decades after the nuclear disaster at Ukraine’s Chernobyl power plant in what became the exclusion zone created by the forced mass evacuations of the population. Wolves, bears and lynx have rebounded in the radioactive landscape, along with a rare breed of horses native to Mongolia. Scientists say it shows nature’s ability to recover when human activity is removed. Hidden cameras have revealed the animal population adapting by using abandoned buildings for shelter. Chernobyl remains too dangerous for people but has become an unexpected refuge — and research site — for resilient ecosystems shaped by disaster and war.
By Derek Gatopoulos and Evgeniy Maloletka, Associated Press
Banner image: Wild Przewalski horses graze in a forest inside the Chernobyl exclusion zone, Ukraine, Wednesday, April 8, 2026. Chornobyl is the Ukrainian name for the city. Evgeniy Maloletka, Associated Press
This story first appeared on Mongabay
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