{"id":21183,"date":"2022-10-20T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2022-10-19T22:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcwildlife\/?post_type=purple_issue&#038;p=21183"},"modified":"2022-10-21T12:05:13","modified_gmt":"2022-10-21T10:05:13","slug":"the-wild-iron-curtain","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcwildlife\/2022\/10\/20\/the-wild-iron-curtain\/","title":{"rendered":"The wild iron curtain"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<figure class=\"no-tts wp-block-image alignfull article-in-image photo\"><img loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1546\" height=\"2048\" src=\"https:\/\/dj9jqhxgw9833.cloudfront.net\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2022\/10\/c7b444c1-32dd-4275-83d0-8e17fd56c701.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"no-tts wp-image-21169\" srcset=\"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2022\/10\/c7b444c1-32dd-4275-83d0-8e17fd56c701.jpg 1546w, https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2022\/10\/c7b444c1-32dd-4275-83d0-8e17fd56c701-226x300.jpg 226w, https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2022\/10\/c7b444c1-32dd-4275-83d0-8e17fd56c701-773x1024.jpg 773w, https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2022\/10\/c7b444c1-32dd-4275-83d0-8e17fd56c701-768x1017.jpg 768w, https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2022\/10\/c7b444c1-32dd-4275-83d0-8e17fd56c701-1160x1536.jpg 1160w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1546px) 100vw, 1546px\" \/><figcaption>Nature is claiming space along the remains of a Soviet Union-era patrol road marking the line of the Iron Curtain <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n<h2 class=\"has-text-align-center\">The wild iron curtain<\/h2>\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center sans-serif intro\"><strong>The former no-go zone between east and west has become, in parts, an accidental wildlife haven <\/strong><\/p>\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center sans-serif author\"><em>By <\/em><strong>MARY-ANN OCHOTA <\/strong><\/p>\n\n<figure class=\"no-tts wp-block-image article-in-image photo\"><img loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1248\" height=\"2048\" src=\"https:\/\/dj9jqhxgw9833.cloudfront.net\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2022\/10\/98f52cf4-9a4f-4466-ad71-50ff05969d24.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"no-tts wp-image-21170\" srcset=\"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2022\/10\/98f52cf4-9a4f-4466-ad71-50ff05969d24.jpg 1248w, https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2022\/10\/98f52cf4-9a4f-4466-ad71-50ff05969d24-183x300.jpg 183w, https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2022\/10\/98f52cf4-9a4f-4466-ad71-50ff05969d24-624x1024.jpg 624w, https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2022\/10\/98f52cf4-9a4f-4466-ad71-50ff05969d24-768x1260.jpg 768w, https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2022\/10\/98f52cf4-9a4f-4466-ad71-50ff05969d24-936x1536.jpg 936w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1248px) 100vw, 1248px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center article-full-body sans-serif\"><strong><span class=\"has-inline-color has-ccp-secondary-color\">BBC SOUND<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center article-full-body sans-serif\">Listen to <em>Walking <\/em><em>the <\/em><em>Iron <\/em><em>Curtain, <\/em>a three-part series presented by Mary-Ann Ochota <\/p>\n\n<p class=\"has-drop-cap article-full-body sans-serif dropcap\">THE SUN-SOAKED SHORES OF LAKE PRESPA are buzzing. Not with holidaymakers topping up their tan, but with the symphonic drone of hundreds of thousands of insects. It\u2019s a sensory indicator of a thriving habitat with exceptional biodiversity. The lizards scuttle, the birdsong rises and falls in rich, vivid waves, the fish glimmer in the depths of the lake. <\/p>\n\n<p class=\"article-full-body sans-serif\">Lake Prespa and Ohrid are on the Balkan Peninsula, where the national borders of Albania, North Macedonia and Greece meet \u2013 literally in the middle of the lakes. The lakes and their surrounding mountains and sub-tropical forests are so unique that they\u2019ve been granted UNESCO Biosphere Reserve status. Collectively, they are home to hundreds of endemic species, from the Ohrid trout to rare types of juniper, to the Dalmatian pelican. If you know where to go, you might spot European lynx, grey wolves<span> and brown bears. Tread very softly and the Balkan mole might even show its face.<\/span><\/p>\n\n<ul class=\"no-tts wp-block-purple-slider\" data-autoplay=\"true\" data-speed=\"300\" data-effect=\"fade\"><li class=\"no-tts blocks-gallery-item\"><figure><img src=\"https:\/\/dj9jqhxgw9833.cloudfront.net\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2022\/10\/3099776c-621f-4262-b462-bc4219d397a2.jpg\" alt=\"\" data-id=\"21171\" data-link=\"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcwildlife\/3099776c-621f-4262-b462-bc4219d397a2\/\"\/><figcaption>Dalmatian pelicans benefit from unique habitats in the southernmost European Greenbelt <\/figcaption><\/figure><\/li><li class=\"no-tts blocks-gallery-item\"><figure><img src=\"https:\/\/dj9jqhxgw9833.cloudfront.net\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2022\/10\/aed6f628-cdd0-42f0-97ba-8ac1a78c97f2.jpg\" alt=\"\" data-id=\"21172\" data-link=\"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcwildlife\/aed6f628-cdd0-42f0-97ba-8ac1a78c97f2\/\"\/><figcaption>A black-veined white butterfly thrives near Lake Ohrid <\/figcaption><\/figure><\/li><li class=\"no-tts blocks-gallery-item\"><figure><img src=\"https:\/\/dj9jqhxgw9833.cloudfront.net\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2022\/10\/e4252856-9bfc-48a3-9443-406fe5430e66.jpg\" alt=\"\" data-id=\"21173\" data-link=\"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcwildlife\/e4252856-9bfc-48a3-9443-406fe5430e66\/\"\/><figcaption>Lake Prespa hasn&#8217;t suffered from too much tourism  <\/figcaption><\/figure><\/li><\/ul>\n\n<p class=\"article-full-body sans-serif dropcap\">IN OTHER PLACES, THIS WOULD BE A tourist hotspot; stretches of the lake shore would host floating restaurants, upmarket hotels and paddleboard hire kiosks. But beyond Ohrid city, the villages are small and agriculture is low-intensity. Large tracts of mountainside haven\u2019t ever been cultivated or altered. The reason these ecosystems are intact, to a large extent, is the accidental result of the tumultuous, traumatic history of the 20th century. <\/p>\n\n<p class=\"article-full-body sans-serif\">Four decades of geopolitical tension and physical repression following the end of World War II saw the continent of Europe divided into a Western Bloc (free-market, democratic nations, allied to the USA) and the Eastern Bloc (primarily communist and authoritarian nations, allied with the<span> Soviet Union and China). The so-called \u2018Iron Curtain\u2019 was ideological, but also physical, with thousands of kilometres of fences, land mines, armed patrols and razor wire. It was a death zone for humans, but because people didn\u2019t go there, in parts it became an accidental haven for rare flora and fauna.<\/span><\/p>\n\n<p class=\"article-full-body sans-serif\">After the Iron Curtain fell, naturalists across the continent saw the potential \u2013 maybe this vast greenbelt of linked habitats could be protected for wildlife in peacetime too. And who knows, perhaps it could even play a part in healing the continent\u2019s divisions and usher in a new era of connection and collaboration. They devised a hugely ambitious plan: they would create the world\u2019s longest wildlife reserve following the line of the 12,500km border that had divided the continent for decades. <\/p>\n\n<p class=\"article-full-body sans-serif\">The European Greenbelt spans 24 European countries, 40 national parks and more than 3,000 protected nature areas. <\/p>\n\n<p class=\"article-full-body sans-serif\">It\u2019s one of the biggest environmental and cultural projects in the world, with hundreds of local and transnational organisations collaborating to conserve and protect the network of habitats, from the far northern reaches of boreal forest bordering Finland and Russia, to the coast of the Black Sea. I\u2019m lucky enough to be travelling its length to learn more about the wildlife and the history of this living memorial. <\/p>\n\n<p class=\"article-full-body sans-serif\">\u201cPrespa is one of the most intact natural areas in Europe. And people here, around the lakes, feel like they are one,\u201d explains Gabriel Schwaderer, one of the founders of the European Greenbelt project and director of conservation organisation Euronatur. \u201cThere is complex history, decades of mutual suspicion, and a degree of separation and conflict on a political level, but the people on the ground know they share one environment and have to manage and protect it jointly.\u201d Environmental organisations from Greece, North Macedonia and Albania work together, and the three governments have established the first Transboundary Park in the Balkans. It\u2019s an enviable model of international co-operation. <\/p>\n\n<p class=\"article-full-body sans-serif dropcap\">IN THE FORESTS OF SNE\u017dNIK IN Slovenia, nations once torn apart by the Iron Curtain are working together to help the Eurasian lynx, the biggest wild cat species in Europe. They\u2019re powerfully muscled with long tufts on their ears, distinctive bobbed tails and dramatic black-and-white rimmed eyes. There\u2019s a healthy population in Romania, but populations in forests further west are isolated and suffer from a lack of genetic diversity. The LIFE Lynx programme has successfully relocated 10 wild lynx into the forests of Slovenia and Croatia. The aim is to boost genetic diversity, and link up isolated populations through the Dinaric Mountains and southern Alps. <\/p>\n\n<p class=\"article-full-body sans-serif\">The most recent arrival from Romania is Blisk. A large male in his prime, he\u2019s on alert as two local deer hunters who\u2019ve been bringing food and fresh water to his temporary acclimatisation enclosure today approach with a screwdriver. Carefully they remove the screws and drop a fence panel to the forest floor. The lynx steps out, looks around, then bursts into life. Within seconds, he\u2019s camouflaged among the dappled forest foliage. \u201cHe\u2019s gone! Free and wild! Good luck Blisk!\u201d breathes a local journalist, invited to<span> witness the release. From this spot, we\u2019re told, you could walk hundreds of kilometres under tree cover. It gives Blisk the chance to establish territory and find females. LIFE Lynx researchers will follow his progress, capturing him on camera traps and hopefully, in due course, identifying his DNA in the next generation of wild lynx kittens.<\/span><\/p>\n\n<ul class=\"no-tts wp-block-purple-slider\" data-autoplay=\"true\" data-speed=\"300\" data-effect=\"fade\"><li class=\"no-tts blocks-gallery-item\"><figure><img src=\"https:\/\/dj9jqhxgw9833.cloudfront.net\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2022\/10\/831da9ac-8506-4bc1-a56d-53367919427f.jpg\" alt=\"\" data-id=\"21175\" data-link=\"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcwildlife\/831da9ac-8506-4bc1-a56d-53367919427f\/\"\/><figcaption>Wild boar were once restricted by Germany&#8217;s division <\/figcaption><\/figure><\/li><li class=\"no-tts blocks-gallery-item\"><figure><img src=\"https:\/\/dj9jqhxgw9833.cloudfront.net\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2022\/10\/d0c3ba8c-e4b5-4e6f-8b38-fd2fa188bfbe.jpg\" alt=\"\" data-id=\"21176\" data-link=\"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbcwildlife\/d0c3ba8c-e4b5-4e6f-8b38-fd2fa188bfbe\/\"\/><figcaption>Patrolling the border between Czechoslovakia and West Germany <\/figcaption><\/figure><\/li><\/ul>\n\n<p class=\"article-full-body sans-serif dropcap\">ANIMALS LIVING ON THE ACTUAL hard border of the Iron Curtain responded in unique ways to their unique circumstances. In central Berlin, a population of rabbits thrived in the no man\u2019s land that cut through the<span> city. When the Berlin Wall fell, the rabbits died. Elsewhere, at the fall of the Iron Curtain, animals had new opportunities. \u201cShortly after the border was opened, parts of west Germany that had no wild boar were swamped!\u201d Georg Baumert from the Borderland Museum in Eichsfeld, Germany, tells me. \u201cBut prey species were much slower. On the German-Czech border, even today, more than 30 years later, red deer won\u2019t cross the old lines of the border. They learn everything from their mother, who learned everything from her mother,\u201d Georg tells me. \u201cSo the majority still turn around where the Iron Curtain was. Ten years ago it was 75 percent, now it\u2019s 60 percent. It\u2019s slowly changing because in each generation there will be a few deer who don\u2019t listen to their mothers!\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote has-text-align-center is-style-large\"><p>\u201cIn Slovenia, nations once torn apart by the Iron Curtain are working together to help the Eurasian lynx\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n<p class=\"article-full-body sans-serif\">There are new human pressures along the European Greenbelt. In the Baltic countries, insensitive tourism development risks rare coastal habitats. And in the Balkan Peninsula, more than 3,000 hydroelectric projects are planned. <\/p>\n\n<figure class=\"no-tts wp-block-image article-in-image photo\"><img loading=\"lazy\" width=\"2048\" height=\"1627\" src=\"https:\/\/dj9jqhxgw9833.cloudfront.net\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2022\/10\/d039d250-c1bf-4461-81a1-71904a970639.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"no-tts wp-image-21177\" srcset=\"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2022\/10\/d039d250-c1bf-4461-81a1-71904a970639.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2022\/10\/d039d250-c1bf-4461-81a1-71904a970639-300x238.jpg 300w, https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2022\/10\/d039d250-c1bf-4461-81a1-71904a970639-1024x814.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2022\/10\/d039d250-c1bf-4461-81a1-71904a970639-768x610.jpg 768w, https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2022\/10\/d039d250-c1bf-4461-81a1-71904a970639-1536x1220.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2048px) 100vw, 2048px\" \/><figcaption>Blisk, a European lynx, finds his feet after being relocated to the forests of Sne\u017enik in Slovenia  BOAR: BLICKWINKEL\/ALAMY; BORDER GUARDS: DEZORT JOVAN\/CTK\/ALAMY; LYNX: VEDRAN SLIJEP\u010cEVI\u0106 <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n<p class=\"article-full-body sans-serif\">The borderlands that divided anticommunist Greece from communist Yugoslavia and a violently isolationist, communist Albania were heavily fortified and forcibly depopulated. Other areas were systematically neglected into poverty and inevitable depopulation. The promise of large infrastructure projects and local jobs are appealing to some \u2013 aroad to a modern and prosperous future. For others, the potentially catastrophic environmental and cultural cost can\u2019t be justified. <\/p>\n\n<p class=\"article-full-body sans-serif dropcap\">ONE OF THE LAST WILD, unaltered sections of the Drin River in Albania flows through farmland that\u2019s been cultivated the same way for centuries. It\u2019s now under threat from the Skavica Dam project, which could see the Dib\u00ebr valley turned into a reservoir. Ferzileta Gjika was born in Fushe-Alie village in the valley and fears the dam\u2019s impact. <\/p>\n\n<p class=\"article-full-body sans-serif\">\u201cMy father used to breed horses,\u201d she tells me. \u2018\u201cI grew up listening to the sounds of the river and each day we would swim the horses over the river to the meadows on the other side. When they built the first dam further upstream, things changed. Every day they would release a large amount of water and we would have to get the horses back before the discharge, otherwise they would be drowned. If they build this new dam, they will destroy the river completely and the whole village will be drowned.\u2019 <\/p>\n\n<p class=\"article-full-body sans-serif\">Despite the fact that more than 20,000 people would be displaced from 30 different villages, important wildlife habitats along the river would be inundated and migration corridors for species like lynx would be cut off, the Albanian government are pressing ahead with assessment plans for the Skavica Dam project. <\/p>\n\n<p class=\"article-full-body sans-serif\">\u201cThe government is selling the idea that hydropower is green,\u201d Ferzileta explains. \u201cBut not all projects are appropriate. And they\u2019re not considering other possibilities, such as solar or wind, that could generate clean energy and have a less harmful impact on the environment.\u201d <\/p>\n\n<figure class=\"no-tts wp-block-image article-in-image photo\"><img loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1987\" height=\"1723\" src=\"https:\/\/dj9jqhxgw9833.cloudfront.net\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2022\/10\/0df4e9f5-dbd8-42a0-bf99-1848f88ed2a8.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"no-tts wp-image-21181\" srcset=\"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2022\/10\/0df4e9f5-dbd8-42a0-bf99-1848f88ed2a8.jpg 1987w, https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2022\/10\/0df4e9f5-dbd8-42a0-bf99-1848f88ed2a8-300x260.jpg 300w, https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2022\/10\/0df4e9f5-dbd8-42a0-bf99-1848f88ed2a8-1024x888.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2022\/10\/0df4e9f5-dbd8-42a0-bf99-1848f88ed2a8-768x666.jpg 768w, https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2022\/10\/0df4e9f5-dbd8-42a0-bf99-1848f88ed2a8-1536x1332.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1987px) 100vw, 1987px\" \/><figcaption>The fertile Dib\u00ebr valley in Albania is at risk from dams <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n<p class=\"article-full-body sans-serif\">Forcing local communities to choose between protecting nature and prioritising economic development is wrongheaded, Gabriel Schwaderer insists. \u201cIt\u2019s not either\/ or. Poverty is not a condition that helps protect wildlife. We need to help people improve their lives, build something better with nature and help them see it has value. This,\u201d he sweeps his hand to encompass Albania\u2019s blue-hued mountains and crystal waters, \u201cis an asset for high-value ecotourism and sustainable agriculture. Yes, there\u2019s a need for clean energy and improved infrastructure. But it can be achieved without trashing what they have.\u201d <\/p>\n\n<p class=\"article-full-body sans-serif dropcap\">IN FINLAND, THE ENVIRONMENTAL challenge is in reverse \u2013 rather than protecting pristine habitats from new threats, the race is on to restore habitats that suffered under Cold War conditions. At Linnunsuo wetland, some five hours\u2019 drive northwest of Helsinki, the reedbeds gently rustle and a throng of waterbirds loop low. More than 180 native and migratory species of bird have been recorded here. The presence of Finland\u2019s only native poisonous snake, the common viper, is also an indicator that the ecosystem is in good health, with plenty of prey. <\/p>\n\n<figure class=\"no-tts wp-block-image article-in-image photo\"><img loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1124\" height=\"1425\" src=\"https:\/\/dj9jqhxgw9833.cloudfront.net\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2022\/10\/94e1957b-8208-4bdd-8a48-2d9f2d184a94.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"no-tts wp-image-21182\" srcset=\"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2022\/10\/94e1957b-8208-4bdd-8a48-2d9f2d184a94.jpg 1124w, https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2022\/10\/94e1957b-8208-4bdd-8a48-2d9f2d184a94-237x300.jpg 237w, https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2022\/10\/94e1957b-8208-4bdd-8a48-2d9f2d184a94-808x1024.jpg 808w, https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2022\/10\/94e1957b-8208-4bdd-8a48-2d9f2d184a94-768x974.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1124px) 100vw, 1124px\" \/><figcaption>A brown bear in the forests of Slovenia&#8217;s Sne\u017enik mountains  <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n<p class=\"article-full-body sans-serif\">You can\u2019t tell by looking, but Linnunsuo used to be a state-owned industrial peat mining site. Tero Mustonen, founder of the Snowchange Cooperative, shows me photographs from a few years ago. The dark black peat is dry and exposed, carved by heavy machinery. Vast rectangular pits are fringed by sterile blocks of pines in rulerstraight lines. <\/p>\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote has-text-align-center is-style-large\"><p>\u201cLinnunsuo wetland is now a jewel in the crown for the campaigners pushing to rewild Finland\u201d <\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n<p class=\"article-full-body sans-serif\">\u201cDevastated,\u201d he says. \u201cThis place represents what happened across Finland \u2013 industrial extraction of peat for burning in peat-fired power plants, and monocrop forestry planted on the drained land for timber and wood pulp. For 50 years since the end of World War II, Finland has exploited its natural resources until the land is devastated. We burn peat \u2013 it\u2019s a fuel dirtier than coal. The forest is planted on land that is bleeding carbon. Yes, we have trees, but there is nothing natural about it.\u201d I admit I had always thought of Finland as a country rich in nature. Tero is rueful. \u201cWe have an excellent PR division in the Nordic countries, but below the Arctic Circle, only three per cent of Finland\u2019s natural forest remains and most of the rivers and lakes have been altered and polluted.\u201d <\/p>\n\n<p class=\"article-full-body sans-serif dropcap\">TERO LIVES IN THE NEARBY village of Selkie, on the banks of the Jukajoki River. He\u2019s a conservationist, research scientist and a member of the IPCC (the UN\u2019s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change). He\u2019s also a fisherman. One night in 2010, he got a call from a neighbour, a fellow fisherman. There had been a leak of highly acidic water from one of the peat extraction pits, the equivalent of thousands of litres of bleach flowing directly into the river, killing everything, including tens of thousands of fish. It happened again the following year. The severity of the fish death events marked a turning point \u2013 the village successfully sued the peat company for damages. The mining licences were revoked and extraction at Linnunsuo stopped. The mining company were also forced to pay for the first stage of the site\u2019s regeneration: letting the drained peat re-flood, rewilding the stripped earth, giving nature space to restore. Linnunsuo is now a jewel in the crown for the campaigners pushing to rewild Finland \u2013 and other parts of Europe and beyond. \u201cThe great beauty of the boreal forest is that it can recover,\u201d Tero smiles. \u201cIt\u2019s tough and tenacious. But to give it a chance to do so, we need to change how we manage it.\u201d <\/p>\n\n<p class=\"article-full-body sans-serif\">Finland shares a 1,200km border with Russia, marked by posts rather than a fence. On the Russian side, pristine old-growth forest still exists. The hope is that as forestry practices change in Finland and nature is restored, large animals such as bears, elk and reindeer might travel across the border. <\/p>\n\n<p class=\"article-full-body sans-serif\">Since the invasion of Ukraine, collaboration between Russian and Finnish conservationists has stopped. But, Tero insists, all is not lost. \u201cOur places want to heal. In a world of runaway climate change and war, the success of somewhere like Linnunsuo is a real-world reminder that we have a fighting chance.\u201d <\/p>\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n<section class=\"wp-block-uagb-section uagb-section__wrap uagb-section__background-color uagb-block-92f675d7-a745-447e-9149-048aadb1f961 article-boxout\"><div class=\"uagb-section__overlay\"><\/div><div class=\"uagb-section__inner-wrap\">\n<h5 class=\"has-ccp-primary-dark-background-color has-background\" id=\"block-0a2d3e7b-78c3-4865-b47e-9c3e1f0a5866\"><strong><span class=\"has-inline-color has-ccp-primary-light-color\">Where is the former Iron Curtain?<\/span><\/strong><\/h5>\n\n\n\n<div id=\"block-81d601a9-755c-44e9-9e4f-b1c22aaefbea\" class=\"no-tts wp-block-image is-style-default\"><figure class=\"no-tts aligncenter\"><img src=\"https:\/\/dj9jqhxgw9833.cloudfront.net\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2022\/10\/d847ad1a-ebae-4247-ac4b-8b67fb9d98f5.jpg\" alt=\"This image has an empty alt attribute; its file name is d847ad1a-ebae-4247-ac4b-8b67fb9d98f5.jpg\"\/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p id=\"block-ded0b625-c5e5-4d36-bd58-402826006d5a\">The physical divide of the Cold War era split the USSR and allied countries, including Poland, East Germany and Hungary, from the Western Bloc.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"no-tts wp-block-separator is-style-default\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center\"><strong><span class=\"has-inline-color has-ccp-secondary-dark-color\">OTHER IRON CURTAIN HABITATS <\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h5 class=\"has-text-align-center\"><strong><span class=\"has-inline-color has-ccp-primary-dark-color\">Stories from the borders <\/span><\/strong><\/h5>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"no-tts wp-block-image article-in-image photo\"><img loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1362\" height=\"1052\" src=\"https:\/\/dj9jqhxgw9833.cloudfront.net\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2022\/10\/a0574edc-da72-4838-990f-d3a101ea7ad6.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"no-tts wp-image-21179\" srcset=\"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2022\/10\/a0574edc-da72-4838-990f-d3a101ea7ad6.jpg 1362w, https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2022\/10\/a0574edc-da72-4838-990f-d3a101ea7ad6-300x232.jpg 300w, https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2022\/10\/a0574edc-da72-4838-990f-d3a101ea7ad6-1024x791.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2022\/10\/a0574edc-da72-4838-990f-d3a101ea7ad6-768x593.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1362px) 100vw, 1362px\" \/><figcaption>\u2018Silver forests\u2019 can be seen in Lower Saxony <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"sans-serif article-subsubhead\"><strong>Harz National Park, Germany <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"article-full-body sans-serif\">In 2018, commercial spruce plantations across Germany were at the limits of their resilience due to high summer temperatures and drought. Bark beetles attacked, and millions of trees died en masse. In Harz National Park, it was decided to leave the ghostly silver trees standing and allow natural regeneration. More than 1,500 species of forest beetle require dead wood, and they are considered the engine of forest regeneration. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"no-tts wp-block-image article-in-image photo\"><img loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1362\" height=\"1049\" src=\"https:\/\/dj9jqhxgw9833.cloudfront.net\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2022\/10\/762ee5b8-b34f-4f17-8a9b-19220268a420.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"no-tts wp-image-21180\" srcset=\"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2022\/10\/762ee5b8-b34f-4f17-8a9b-19220268a420.jpg 1362w, https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2022\/10\/762ee5b8-b34f-4f17-8a9b-19220268a420-300x231.jpg 300w, https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2022\/10\/762ee5b8-b34f-4f17-8a9b-19220268a420-1024x789.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2022\/10\/762ee5b8-b34f-4f17-8a9b-19220268a420-768x592.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1362px) 100vw, 1362px\" \/><figcaption>Continued efforts to halt erosion have saved the spit <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"sans-serif article-subsubhead\"><strong>Curonian Spit, Lithuania &amp; Russia <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"article-full-body sans-serif\">A unique chain of sand dunes, 98km long, separates a freshwater lagoon from the Baltic Sea. The northern end is part of Lithuania; the southern end is part of Kaliningrad, in the Russian Federation. The grey dunes, dominated by lichens, mosses and low-lying perennial grasses, provide important nesting sites for white-tailed eagles and tawny pipits. Since the start of the Ukraine war, no cross-border collaboration has been possible. <\/p>\n<\/div><\/section>\n\n<hr class=\"no-tts wp-block-separator is-style-wide\"\/>\n\n<div class=\"no-tts wp-block-image article-in-image photo is-style-default\"><figure class=\"no-tts alignleft size-large is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/dj9jqhxgw9833.cloudfront.net\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2022\/10\/Ellipse-1.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"no-tts wp-image-21616\" width=\"92\" height=\"90\" srcset=\"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2022\/10\/Ellipse-1.png 324w, https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/44\/2022\/10\/Ellipse-1-300x293.png 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 92px) 100vw, 92px\" \/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n<h5 class=\"sans-serif article-subhead\"><strong><span class=\"has-inline-color has-ccp-secondary-color\">ABOUT THE AUTHOR <\/span><\/strong><\/h5>\n\n<p class=\"article-full-body sans-serif\">Mary-Ann Ochota is an anthropologist and broadcaster, and Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society. She has presented numerous radio and television programmes for the BBC. Find her on Twitter and Instagram @MaryAnnOchota or visit <a href=\"http:\/\/maryannochota.com\">maryannochota.com<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n<p class=\"footer\">Photos: CURONIAN SPIT: LUKAS JONAITIS\/ALAMY; HARZ: ALAMY; ALBANIA: GETTY; BEAR: FRANCO BANFI\/NATUREPL.COM <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The former no-go zone between east and west has become, in parts, an accidental wildlife haven 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