This is in part because of beavers building dams, with nobody stopping them due to the war.
Local beavers are helping Ukraine defend itself from a potential new front in Russia's invasion, Reuters reported on Thursday.
The animals are unwittingly helping Kyiv by building dams that keep the ground marshy and impassable, a military spokesman told the agency.
This helps Ukraine by making it less likely that an attack could come via Belarus, which borders Ukraine not far north of the capital Kyiv.
Ukrainian officials had warned that Russia may wage an offensive through its ally Belarus into a region of Ukraine called Volyn.
Its spokesman, Serhiy Khominskyi, praised the beavers, which he told Reuters were more working unimpeded, unlike in other years.
Beavers are known to be remarkable builders, using tree branches, vegetation, rocks, and mud to create dams that protect them from predators. »