In the summer of 2020, loggerhead turtles, swimming in the waters of Laganas Bay in Zakynthos, saw that there were no boats and people in the sea, and moved comfortably to shallower and warmer waters, where female turtles face more favorable conditions for growing up. eggs. The manatees stayed in the warmer waters for as long as needed, as there was no human disturbance due to the pandemic. This is one example of the consequences for nature and especially for the animal world of a sharp and very large-scale cessation of human activities during self-isolation due to a pandemic that American scientists hastened to call the “anthropopause”. What can this “teach” us about interacting with nature in the future?

“Zante receives up to a million tourists, especially in summer. At the same time, it is a very important nesting site for loggerhead sea turtles, which number up to 400-500 individuals. From mid-June, turtles come out to the shallows of Laganas Bay, 100 meters from the shore, where the depth remains a meter, and the water is much warmer. Elevated temperature promotes the development of their eggs. But when tourists and vacationers come en masse in July – Laganas is a busy beach – the turtles are forced to retreat to a depth of 200-400 meters from the coast, to colder areas, “says Kostas “K” Katselidis, biologist. – ecologist, head Zakynthos National Marine Park.

Since 2016, researchers have been specifically studying the behavior of sea turtles. “Until 2019, we observed the process of removing turtles, only to later go to the beach and lay their eggs. However, in the summer of 2020, when there was almost no tourism in Zakynthos, the turtles came out and remained in shallow water until the end of July,” explains Mr. Katselidis. In a special study published in a scientific journal (Mr. Katselidis is a member of the research team), it is stated that in the shallows of the Gulf of Laganas, the water temperature is up to 3-5 degrees higher than the ambient temperature. “The 2020 data set showed that increased travel pressure, not temperature, is forcing turtles to move to more remote areas. Specifically, more than 50% of the turtles stayed within 100 meters of the shore.” As mentioned in the publication, this situation can have a positive effect on the maturation of turtle eggs. “2020 has been a good year for carriage-carriage breeding. The picture of 2021 is also of interest, as tourism has been greatly reduced. The trends were similar, although we have not yet finished processing the data,” notes the head of the Zakynthos Marine Park.

The island receives up to a million tourists, especially in summer. In 2020, things were different.

This period showed that sea turtles can sense changes in human pressure levels and adjust their distribution accordingly. “Turtles can live with people. We must be especially careful until mid-July, when their eggs are ripe. Protection measures need to be updated as there are too many boats in Laganas today. The environmental education of visitors is also crucial,” emphasizes Mr. Katselidis. The study proposes to define a “May-June coastal refuge area” when tourist pressure is at its lowest but turtles begin to congregate.

But not only Laganas Bay was “empty” from human presence in 2020. In the seas, the ban on fishing and movement, especially during the first quarantine period (spring 2020), has led to a large recall of boats. “The seas have calmed down. The noise pollution from the movement of so many ships, especially in summer, is terrible, and the consequences in general are not yet known. Then many species became extinct. Of course, it was a terrible landscape, since we could not see another boat for many hours, ”Thodoris Tsimpidis, director of the Archipelago Institute for Marine Protection, told K.

What were the consequences for fish populations? “During the first quarantine period, there was a significant decrease in fishing activity, which was estimated at 25-30% at the Mediterranean level. This means that pressure on fish stocks has also decreased, especially during the breeding season of most Mediterranean fish. Fishing was banned, even amateur, and the focus remained closed, and indeed at the global level. Even many months later, when tourism and catering remained at a low level, the demand for fish and marine invertebrates was noticeably lower,” says AUTH fisheries biology professor Tanasis Tsikleras. “This unprecedented situation leads to the theoretical conclusion that the future will favor an increase in the biomass of fish and other marine organisms. However, it is still too early to tell exactly how the reduction in fishing pressure has affected, as data is still being collected. In the end, any changes will be noticeable mainly in species that live for several years. Do not forget also that development is multifactorial. For example, last year there was a very strong sea heat wave in the northern Aegean that forced many species to move to deeper waters, as well as an unusual phytoplankton outbreak that limited the fishing of most fleets and hampered scientific assessments,” he concludes. Mr Cycleras.

The tourists have gone, the eagles have come

The departure of a person during the quarantine period from many areas has had conflicting results, as confirmed by research and publications at the international level. For example, the lack of tourists from the island of Stora Karslo in Sweden has given the eagles the opportunity to hit Uria aalge seabird colonies hard, preying on their chick population. On Gaff Island, an important habitat for endangered seabirds in the South Atlantic Ocean, the pandemic delay in a project to control giant mice has had a severe impact on bird eggs. However, in general, the reduction of anthropogenic pressure on ecosystems has freed up more space for wildlife. At Hanauma Bay Park in Hawaii, water clarity improved by 56%, along with the presence of fish. Even birds in cities or on their outskirts, as unprecedented silence reigned, began to chirp at lower frequencies and communicate at twice the distance.