Animals that isolate: 7 species that have mastered the art of social distancing

The World Wildlife Fund has highlighted creatures known for their "anti-social" lifestyles

Polar bears, the planet’s biggest land-based carnivores tend to be on the anti-social side. Apart from actively seeking mating partners in the later spring and early summer and raising their cubs, adult polar bears tend to stay in solitude. Males seek out females by following their scent, but once they’ve found their mate, the bears are only together for about a week before separating,. Steven Kazlowski / WWF

Marine turtles prefer to only interact with other turtles for short periods, typically for mating or, for some species, nesting. Antonio Busiello/ WWF-US

Snow leopards are elusive creatures, active at dawn and dusk and able to kill prey up to three times their weight. They are usually only be seen together during mating season or when a mother is looking after her cubs. Ola Jennersten / WWF-Sweden

Jaguars are land-based hunters that can be found climbing trees to attack their prey and sometimes even hunting for fish in water bodies - all while alone, of course. Emmanuel Rondeau / WWF France

Orangutans are semi-solitary in the wild and occasionally gather around and feed in large fruiting trees while female orangutans also travel with their offspring. Anup Shah / WWF

Giant Pandas are great tree climbers and can spend up to 14 hours a day feeding, mainly on bamboo. Like many other solitary animals, they only spend time together during the breeding season. Sharon Fisher

Blue whales swim only occasionally in small groups, preferring to move alone or in pairs. Richard Barrett / WWF-UK

Human beings are generally social animals, so the concept of self-isolation and physical distancing might feel unnatural for many of us right now. But, as the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) points out, for many species across the globe, spending months or even years in solitude is a way of life.

Blue whales, for instance, prefer to roam the oceans alone or in pairs, while the giant panda is a solitary creature that can spend up to 14 hours a day just eating (kind of like us while we work from home).

In fact, there is a whole host of creatures that prefer to spend time alone, which is why the WWF has taken the opportunity to round up some of the “best social distancing experts in the animal kingdom”.

Perhaps we can learn a thing or two from them for the time-being.

Listed in the gallery above are some of such creatures known for their “anti-social lifestyles."

They like to be left alone, and so we humans should give them their space.