'Ticking time bomb': Study outlines severe effects disposable face masks have on wildlife

A new study found that “COVID waste” such as disposable face masks have emerged as a threat to wildlife habitats after they are discarded.

“We signal COVID-19 litter as a new threat to animal life as the materials designed to keep us safe are actually harming animals around us,” the study’s authors wrote in the paper’s abstract.

Researchers found cases of wildlife being harmed from across the globe, noting that litter from COVID supplies was affecting every species from foxes in the United Kingdom to birds in Canada. Disposable face...