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https://www.bbc.co.uk/future/article/20250707-the-vienna-cemetery-where-endangered-species-and-biodiversity-thrive>
'Some of the greats are here. Beethoven, Schubert, Brahms. As well as the
Hollywood pin-up-turned-inventor Hedy Lamarr – oh, and Austrian rock icon
Falco. This is their final resting place.
But tread carefully through the Vienna Central Cemetery in the early hours of
the morning and you might catch a glimpse of something moving between the
weathered headstones. Not ghosts – but puffy-cheeked European hamsters. They're
very much alive.
These adorable mammals reside in the Park of Peace and Power on the northern
side of the cemetery. Narrow trails on the ground reveal where they have been
scurrying lately. Once considered a pest, the hamsters are now critically
endangered in Europe. Urbanisation and industrial farming have decimated their
habitat in recent decades, and should their population continue to decline,
they are likely to be extinct by 2050 according to the IUCN Red List. For now,
they're clinging on to life here – in Europe's second-biggest cemetery. As
unlikely as it might seem, this place is a perfect home for them. The
landscapers are careful not to disrupt their burrows, and visitors like to
leave snacks for them. In winter, when their natural food supply runs low, the
hamsters often pilfer candles from nearby graves to eat the oil-rich wax.
Urban cemeteries are overlooked biodiversity hubs even though they are
similarly valuable to urban parks in terms of species conservation. A 2019
review of graveyard biodiversity identified 140 protected species in cemeteries
around the world, from the orchids of Turkish cemeteries to the increasingly
scarce steppe vegetation found on burial mounds in Eurasia.
As places of tranquillity with great cultural and spiritual importance to many,
cemeteries have largely missed the effects of urbanisation that have taken
place in their surrounding cities during recent centuries. As such, they
represent refuges for local wildlife and can serve as stepping stone habitats –
small patches of nature that animals use to migrate between larger natural
areas. This is especially crucial in cities, where green spaces are shrinking
and animal habitats are increasingly fragmented.
The wild inhabitants of the vast Vienna Central Cemetery, which spans 2.4 sq km
(0.9 sq miles), are watched over by Thomas Filek, researcher at the University
of Natural Resources and Life Sciences in Vienna. Walking across the meadow
that has become home to the European hamsters, he points out their small
burrows in the tall grass. "We've talked to the gardeners about working in a
way that protects biodiversity, and not mowing everything is a big part of it,"
says Filek. "It's important to think in cycles – it starts with plants, they
bring insects, the insects bring birds and so on."'
Via
Positive.News
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
