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Ecology expert Oleh Lystopad gestures as he talks about the destruction of Ukraine’s forests, during an interview in the Botanical Garden in Kyiv, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, July 22, 2024. All that remains of many forests in eastern Ukraine are fields of stripped, broken trunks. Local wildlife, including deer, boars and woodpeckers, have been badly affected by the loss of habitats, the experts said, although it is currently hard to gauge biodiversity loss in forests. In northern Ukraine's Chornobyl nature reserve, the pre-war population of over 100 Przewalski's horses - a globally endangered species of wild horse - has been hit hard by the conflict, according to Lystopad, an ecologist with the ANTS advocacy group who said landmines were making it difficult to extinguish fires. "Right now, it's in question to what extent this species can continue to exist there," Lystopad said. REUTERS/Thomas Peter SEARCH "PETER UKRAINE FORESTS" FOR THIS STORY. SEARCH "WIDER IMAGE" FOR ALL STORIES.
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