The natural world in 2021

Rain, wind or shine, the outdoor life was a compelling part of our Covid-19 reality. Socialising in real life became weather dependent and this January one gallery extended this theme to cultural appreciation. Turning London's Southbank into an invisible exhibition space with the magic of augmented reality, the interactive approach could have far reaching ramifications.

Birbaum: “One of the ideas has been to democratise art, to, to, to, in a way, make art visible in places where normally it's not visible. You know, there are people who don't live in major capitals where there are big collections."

Blizzard conditions unseen in Madrid for a half century lifted the spirits of the Spanish capital's locked-down residents despite transportation grinding to a halt. The city saw a flurry of activity as locals merrily sculpted snow figures and skiers beat the cross town traffic, the chilly winter wonderland proving an irresistible draw and welcome respite from less positive daily realities.

Covadonga Solares: ”It's great! We're so excited and there's also such a good atmosphere. You see people having fun and I really - maybe I'm a bit too sensitive, I think it's moving, the mood is happy. It's nice, really."

Meanwhile, a citizen science project in Belgium gave daily strolls a sense of purpose as researchers recruited volunteers for the "Clear air for everyone" study. Disguising ultra fine particle pollutant sensors as Baby Claire, recruits walked the streets of Antwerp in the service of a noble cause.

Bonaers: "I have a child myself and I worry that she has to grow up in a very polluted city.”

Staycationing in Hong Kong swiftly led to ecological breakdown for the bovine inhabitants of the idyllic Grass Island. Floods of visitors stampeded over the lush pastures, littering the land with plastic debris which the malnourished cows then began to devour. Volunteers bringing hay from elsewhere attempted to prevent their bellies being clogged with plastics.

Ho Loy: "Many of the cow you can see that they have like a strange, swollen stomach, which mean they have a certain amount of plastic in their, in their digestion system already."

A South African bird conservation foundation came to the rescue when hungry cormorants unable to find food abandoned their broods, bringing the surviving fledglings to the mainland. Although hand-reared by dedicated volunteers saved the majority of these orphans, concern remains that this unstable cycle could jeopardise the cormorant's future.

Nicky Stander: "If they’re not finding their fish in the wild, what's going to happen? They’re going to either stop breeding or if they do breed, they’re going to just abandon if they’re not finding enough food.”

And finally, one woolly soul saved from the Australian bush was given the shearing of his life thanks to concerned citizens in Victoria. Now named Baarack, the newly shorn sheep had been carrying five years' worth of fleece, weighing 35 kilogrammes. The animal sanctuary which has given Baarack a new home released a video of the ovine rescue, turning the erstwhile vagabond into a TikTok phenomenon overnight. View Less