Animal and Haze

Hey! This week I am going to talk about the impacts of haze on a group that is often overlooked – Animals. While the impacts of air pollution on human health are well documented and quantifiable, there is a lack of data on the impacts of air pollution on wildlife. This means that the true extent of the effects of haze on animals are unknown and can be potentially worse than we thought.

When we think of the impacts of haze, we associate it with respiratory problems, itchy eyes etc.. While the animals certainly are affected by such symptoms, they also face additional challenges that we don’t consider.

During the haze period in Singapore, it was observed that the volumes of bird cries are substantially lower than pre-haze periods. This suggests that bird activities have decreased due to the haze. Apart from them dying due to breathing in too many pollutants, the birds could have increased difficulty in sourcing for food, due to visual impairment.

Insects may be affected to an even larger extent. As insects breathe through their skin, they are especially sensitive to changes in the atmosphere.  In a study conducted, the haze has been found to increase the mortality of caterpillars, impede their rate of growth and lower its larval weight. Due to the relatively short life cycles of insect, a long period of haze can put a bigger dent in their population than species with longer life expectancies. This makes population recovery for insects particularly difficult, as more “generations” of the species will be lost in the same duration than larger animals.

Given the same hazy conditions, animals are affected to a larger extent than humans.

Humans have ways to adapt to and overcome the haze. Staying indoors, the use of air filtration devices or wearing masks, these are just some methods to counteract the effects of the haze. In a survey I conducted with 24 respondents, ages 19-23, the majority stated an increased usage of air filtration devices in their home during the 2015 haze. Interestingly, more than half did not actively wear masks during that period,which is below my expectations. Perhaps, the majority chose to stay indoors more and avoided going out, reducing the need for masks.

When faced with haze, more people do not wear masks than I expected.
As expected, there is a conscious effort to use air-conditioners to filter the air during a haze.

The ability to act and protect oneself from the impacts of air pollution is a privilege that the animal does not have. Even if some people do not wish to take certain actions to better safeguard themselves against the haze, they always have the option to do so. Similarly, while we can seek treatment for the ailments caused by haze, animals can only suffer and recover on their own.

Animals have a harder time adapting to, and recovering from a haze. With the fragility of the ecosystem in mind, and the true extent of the damage caused by air pollution unknown, air pollution might affect the ecology to a greater degree than we think.

So, are animals truly more affected by air pollution than us? Let me know what you think in the comments below.

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