http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/8107166.stm
I'm not sure if the podcast below will operate outside British Broadcasting Zones ....
http://www.bbc.co.uk/podcasts/series/oneplanet
There's a village in the Mediterranean where animals such as the sheep-like Mouflons are never shooed out of the bar, herded out of a house, or prevented from having a rummage among the clothes, shoes and books that lay scattered among the rooms.
In 1974, after Turkish troops arrived on the island amid political upheaval, the residents of Variseia - who were Greek Cypriots - received 24 hours' notice to leave their homes as conflict enveloped Cyprus.
The child's text book; the high-heeled shoe; the empty custard powder tin that lay in the empty buildings. Signs of a previous life are everywhere in Variseia.
Mouflons are thriving as frequent houseguests in Varisiea
"Pigeons, foxes and rats have got comfortable where humans once bedded down. But more exotic animals and plants have also found the lack of human activity in the buffer zone to their liking.
It's a free-for-all as far as the animals are concerned, and they're thriving. This village on the island of Cyprus inevitably has a sad tale behind it, but scientists are gleaning a wealth of information from the area as nature flourishes following a 35 year absence from any significant human activity.
