CHERNOBYL, Ukraine (AP) 鈥� On contaminated land that is too dangerous for human life, the world鈥檚 wildest horses roam free.
Across the , Przewalski鈥檚 horses 鈥� stocky, sand-colored and almost toy-like in appearance 鈥� graze in a radioactive landscape larger than Luxembourg.
On April 26, 1986, an explosion at the sent radiation across Europe and forced the evacuation of entire towns, displacing tens of thousands. It was the worst nuclear disaster in history.
Four decades on, Chernobyl 鈥� which is transliterated as 鈥淐hornobyl鈥� in Ukraine 鈥� remains too dangerous for humans. But the wildlife has moved back in.
Wolves now prowl the vast no-man鈥檚-land spanning and Belarus, and brown bears have returned after more than a century. Populations of lynx, moose, red deer and even have rebounded.
Przewalski鈥檚 horses, and once on the brink of disappearing, were introduced here in 1998 as an experiment.
Known as 鈥渢akhi鈥� in Mongolia (鈥渟pirit鈥�), the horses are distinct from domestic breeds, with 33 pairs of chromosomes, compared with 32 in domesticated horses. The modern name comes from the Russian explorer who first formally identified them.
鈥淭he fact that Ukraine now has a free-ranging population is something of a small miracle,鈥� said Denys Vyshnevskyi, the zone鈥檚 lead nature scientist.
With human pressure gone, parts of the exclusion zone now resemble European landscapes from centuries past, he said, adding: 鈥淣ature and effectively.鈥�
The transformation is visible everywhere. Trees pierce abandoned buildings, roads dissolve into forest, and weathered Soviet-era signs stand beside leaning wooden crosses in overgrown cemeteries.
Hidden cameras show the horses adapting in unexpected ways. They seek shelter in crumbling barns and deserted homes, using them to escape harsh weather and insects 鈥� even bedding down inside.
The horses live in small social groups 鈥� typically one stallion with several mares and their young 鈥� alongside separate bands of younger males. Many died after their introduction, but others adapted.
Declared extinct in the wild in 1969, Przewalski鈥檚 horses survived only through captive breeding before reintroduction efforts rebuilt a global population of about 3,000, according to Florian Drouard, an operations manager at a program for the horses at Cevennes National Park in southern France.
鈥淭his species is a remarkable example of successful reintroduction,鈥� he said. 鈥淲hile it is still far from being fully secure, it has shown that with proper preparation, a species kept in captivity can regain the social and ecological behaviors needed to live freely.鈥�
The horse, he said, has proved unexpectedly adaptable, adapted to open landscapes but now also thriving in Ukraine’s partly forested environment.
Tracking the animals at Chernobyl takes time. Vyshnevskyi often drives alone for hours, setting motion-sensitive camera traps in camouflaged casings attached to trees.
Despite persistent radiation, scientists have not recorded widespread die-offs, though subtler effects are evident. Some frogs have developed darker skin, and birds in higher-radiation areas are more likely to develop cataracts.
However, new threats have emerged.
搁耻蝉蝉颈补鈥檚 fighting through the exclusion zone as troops advanced toward Kyiv, digging defenses into contaminated soil. Fires linked to military activity swept through forests.
Harsh wartime winters have also taken a toll. Damage to the power grid left surrounding managed areas without resources, and scientists report increases in fallen trees and dead animals 鈥� casualties of both extreme conditions and hastily built fortifications.
鈥淢ost forest fires are caused by downed drones,鈥� said Oleksandr Polischuk, who leads a firefighting unit in the zone. 鈥淪ometimes we have to travel dozens of kilometers to reach them.鈥�
Fires can send radioactive particles back into the air.
Today, the zone is no longer just an accidental refuge for wildlife. It has become a heavily monitored military corridor, marked by concrete barriers, barbed wire and minefields 鈥� a landscape of what some describe as grim beauty.
Personnel rotate in and out to limit radiation exposure. Chernobyl is likely to remain off-limits for generations 鈥� too dangerous for people, yet full of life.
鈥淔or those of us in conservation and ecology, it鈥檚 kind of a wonder,鈥� Vyshnevskyi said. 鈥淭his land was once heavily used 鈥� agriculture, cities, infrastructure. But nature has effectively performed a factory reset.鈥�
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Associated Press writers Dmytro Zhyhinas and Vasilisa Stepanenko in Chernobyl, Ukraine, contributed to this report.
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