Riddled with landmines and surrounded by fences, the Demilitarized Zone between North and South Korea isn’t exactly welcoming to humans. Wildlife, on the other hand, appears to be thriving.
Golden eagles, goats and wild cats are among the 6,168 wildlife species found in new Street View images released by Google this week, offering a rare glimpse into life behind civilian control lines.
Created in collaboration with several Korean institutions to mark the 70th anniversary of the armistice between North and South Korea, the project allows viewers to take a “virtual tour” of the 160-mile-long buffer zone between the two countries.
Spanning the entire peninsula, the DMZ includes a variety of environments, from rocky mountains to rivers and tidal marshes.
Far from landmines buried under the soil of the border region, otters and endangered Manchurian trout swim freely in the Imjin River that flows from North to South Korea.
And animals such as long-tailed mountain goats, classified as endangered by South Korea’s environment ministry, can be seen in the rocky terrain of the Taebaek Mountains.
Virtual tours on Google Street View show the untouched volcanic landscape of the Hantan River Gorge, with high granite walls and sandy beaches, and the grassy high moors of Yongnap, a haven for wetland flora.
Peace talks between North and South Korea in 2018 raised hopes among ecologists that the two states could work together to preserve the wildlife habitats of the narrow strip between them.
And in 2019, South Korea opened several “peace routes” hiking trails leading to the south side of the DMZ.
However, seven decades after the Korean War, the two countries officially remain at war as the fighting ended in an armistice rather than a peace treaty in 1953.
However, tensions have risen in recent weeks as Kim Jong Un continues his program of nuclear development and weapons testing. In 2022, North Korea had a record year in weapons displays, firing more than 70 ballistic missiles.
On Monday, North Korea fired two short-range ballistic missiles towards Japan on Monday in its second weapons test in three days.
North Korea has insisted that its test activities are meant as a warning amid an increased US presence in the region. But some experts worry that Pyongyang also uses the exercises as an opportunity to test new weapons, bolster its nuclear capability and exert its influence in future deals with Washington and Seoul.
