Chernobyl is too radioactive for humans – but wild animals are thriving like never before

NewsWorldEuropeChernobyl is too radioactive for humans – but wild animals are thriving like never beforeWolves now prowl the vast no-man’s-land spanning Ukraine and Belarus, and brown bears have returned after more than a centuryDerek Gatopoulos & Evgeniy MaloletkaMonday 20 April 2026 08:41 BSTBookmarkBookmark popoverRemoved from bookmarksClose popover{"translations":{"comments":"Go to comments","share":"Share","copyLink":"Copy link","bookmark":"Bookmark","removeBookmark":"Remove bookmark"},"showComments":false,"showBookmark":true,"articleId":"CF1:2960499To1","articleMeta":{"url":"https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/chernobyl-animals-ukraine-radioactive-horses-b2960854.html","title":"Chernobyl is too radioactive for humans – wild animals are thriving like never before"}}open image in gallery{"id":"trigger-autogallery-5267","index":0}A wild deer walks on snow in a forest inside the Chernobyl exclusion zone, Ukraine (Local Library)On The Ground newsletter: Get a weekly dispatch from our international correspondentsGet a weekly dispatch from our international correspondentsGet a weekly international news dispatchEmail*SIGN UPI would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our Privacy notice{"className":"sc-1ge0fwe-0","newsletterData":{"regSourceNewsletter":"IND_On_The_Ground_Newsletter","regTitle":"On The Ground","subscriptionGroup":"on_the_ground","subscriptionGroupId":"14806361-6435-4d19-b06e-05326605fb01","pathPrefix":["/news/world/europe","/news/world/middle-east","/news/world/australasia","/news/world/africa","/asia"],"associatedAuthors":["Bel Trew","Sam Kiley"],"title":"On The Ground newsletter: Get a weekly dispatch from our international correspondents","mobileTitle":"Get a weekly international news dispatch","lengthenedMobileTitle":"Get a weekly dispatch from our international correspondents","imageSrc":"https://static.independent.co.uk/static-assets/images/newsletters/onTheGround1_1.png","newsletterKey":"rece...