If some natural phenomenon provokes an unpleasant or upsetting reaction in you, you might have some kind of ‘biophobia.’
The American Psychological Association defines it as “the fear toward certain species and general aversion to nature that creates an urge to affiliate with technology and other human artifacts, interests, and constructions rather than with animals, landscapes, and other elements of the natural world.”
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Some of the most common biophobias are arachnophobia—fear of spiders, ophidiophobia—fear of snakes, and musophobia—fear of mice or rats. Typically, the level of fear that an animal provokes isn’t proportional to the actual threat it poses. Some people could be afraid of butterflies and call themselves lepidopterophobes, even though the insect is harmless.
In fact, it’s impossible for a butterfly to pose a threat to humans, as they don’t have venom or stingers and can’t bite. They don’t carry diseases like other insects, avoid rough contact as they’re fragile, and feed on nectar instead of other organisms.
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The previously mentioned phobias were all related to animals, which fall under the umbrella name 'zoophobia.' There are also biophobias that include the natural environment itself, which are generally called 'ecophobia.'
An example of this is astraphobia, the intense and irrational fear of thunder and lightning. Another very similar one is astrophobia, which encompasses the fear of stars, outer space, and the night sky. There’s also the fear of trees—dendrophobia, water—hydrophobia, or snow—chionophobia. The list goes on and on—I think you get the drill.
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Some of these fears might seem irrational, but they have evolutionary reasons behind them. For our ancestors, nature was a big source of potential danger. Having phobic reactions towards nature and its creations may have helped the early humans to avoid infectious diseases or encounters with dangerous animals and organisms.
But nowadays, the biophobias can also be the cause of traumatic experiences and genetics. People with a close family member with a phobia or another anxiety disorder are more likely to develop fears related to nature. A phobia can also be triggered by a traumatic, difficult, or stressful experience. Like, for example, being stung by a bee might cause apiphobia—the fear of these insects.
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Does not even look real. Did I find an alien?
The interesting thing that scientists have noticed about biophobias is that people are exhibiting strong phobic responses toward organisms that they can’t find in their immediate environment, even if they pose no tangible threats. This type of phobia has become one of the most common fears and is continuously increasing, especially in urban populations.
The expansion of urban areas could be the issue—that’s what some scientists think, at least. Urban areas reduce our opportunities to interact with nature, which may lead people to wrongly associate nature with fear or disgust.
This is worrying because modern society may suffer from a vicious cycle of biophobia, leading people to the avoidance of nature and preventing them from benefiting from all the mental and physical perks nature can provide.
Biophobias can also hinder conservation efforts, particularly for less appealing-looking species that are very beneficial to our environment despite their appearance.
It’s important that we don’t let biophobias consume us, as they can have a negative effect on our mental and physical health and harm the living creatures and the environment we all share.
