Birds in war-ravaged Ukraine are constructing nests using fibre optic cables that crisscross the country's 746-mile front line. These ultra-thin wires, stretching up to 20 kilometres, form a glistening spider web over buildings and trees, deployed by both Ukraine and Russia to prevent drone jamming.
Discovery of the nests
Yana Hrynko, a senior researcher at Kyiv's War Museum, confirmed that at least two such nests have been found. Experts are uncertain which bird species built them or when, and the nests have been sent for testing. 'Objects such as bird nests with fragments of optic fibre demonstrate the change in the nature of war,' Hrynko said.
Several nests have been discovered in frontline regions of Donetsk, Kharkiv and Zaporizhzhia in recent weeks, Ukrainian personnel told Reuters. A support battalion of the 12th Azov Brigade in the Torets direction shared a photo of an artificial bird's nest on Telegram last month, stating: 'This is just one of dozens of manifestations of how nature survives in the flames of war. Between hundreds of drones, assaults, shelling, and kilometres of scorched earth.'
Impact of war on nature
One nest was found after a Russian glide bomb knocked down a tree in Donbas. Olena Tregub, secretary general of the Ukrainian civil society group NAKO, called the pile of cables and grass an 'apocalyptic bird nest'. UAnimals, a national animal welfare group, shared a video on Instagram posted by a Ukrainian soldier, noting that fibreglass does not decompose, continuing to strangle the landscape long after drones have left. 'But we must remember that the Russians are forcing us to wage a defensive war, and the responsibility for the wounded nature lies with our enemies,' UAnimals added.
Birds adapting to human-made materials
Birds are increasingly using rubbish like sweet wrappers, cigarettes and wires to build nests, alarming ornithologists. Researchers say this behaviour shows birds, which evolved from tiny dinosaurs 150 million years ago, are adapting to a human-shaped world. Some birds pluck cigarette butts for nicotine to deter predators, or use anti-bird spikes as material. An analysis of nests over the last 30 years found birds even used face masks during the COVID-19 pandemic, which researchers described as soft like a mattress. However, this rubbish can be dirty and nestlings may ingest it, leading to sickness or death.
Expert analysis
Auke-Florian Hiemstra, a biologist based in Leiden, Netherlands, said Ukraine's cable-filled nests have pros and cons. Birds may become entangled in the spools of cable, but they might also use it to strengthen their nests. 'We're going to look for DNA traces still in a nest to determine who actually made the nest,' Hiemstra said, as one artificial nest was sent to her team. 'I have never seen nests like this before – and I have seen many, many bird nests.'
