Animals around the world have claimed cities and islands for their own, from islands swarming with rabbits or iguanas, to towns invaded each year by polar bears. Sometimes the animals are invasive species, having arrived in their new home as stowaways on boats or as pets that got loose and multiplied in the wild. Others have more mysterious origins, with no one exactly sure how they got there. Here we take a look at some of the places that have been overrun by critters around the world, from islands swarming with rabbits to towns invaded each year by polar bears.

1. Fox Village - Japan

Near the city of Shiroishi in Japan in the Miyagi mountains, there is a that is home to over a hundred animals, . These cute little critters roam around freely, and the preserve has structures and little houses built for the foxes. Visitors can even purchase food to feed the animals.

2. Macaques - New Delhi, India

Thousands of macaque monkeys roam the streets of New Delhi. These for being the living representatives of the Hindu god Hanuman, according The New York Times, and it is a Hindu tradition to feed them on Tuesdays and Saturdays. Because of being fed, and gotten more aggressive so the Indian government has of their nemesis, the black-faced langur monkey, to scare away the troublesome macaques, reports The BBC.

3. Rabbits - Okunoshima, Japan

Okunoshima, ” was once during the Second World War. Today that are . No one is exactly sure, however, how the island became overrun by these fluffy little animals.

4. Pigs - Big Major Cay, The Bahamas

There are about . Not only that, but the pigs know how to swim and they are known to doggie-paddle out to greet tourists and boats visiting the island to beg for food.

5. Polar Bears - Churchill, Manitoba, Canada

Churchill Manitoba is considered the “Polar Bear Capital of The World” because every year, polar bears gather in the to wait for the bay to ice over so they can hunt on the ice pack. Local tour operators offer tourists a way to in their natural habitat from tundra vehicles or wilderness lodges, according to the website EverythingChurchill.com.

6. Deer - Nara, Japan

In the ancient city of Nara, Japan, about . The animals have been sacred for the last 1,300 years in Nara because the deer were thought to be god's messengers by believers of Shintoism. Tourists can purchase (deer crackers) from carts to , according to Amusing Planet, and some of the more polite deer have after receiving a treat.

7. Assateague Island - Maryland & Virginia

Assateague Island, located off Maryland’s eastern shore, is , though they are not technically wild. According to the the horses on the island are actually feral or descendants of domestic animals that turned back wild. The horses on the island are split into two herds – one on the Virginia side and one on the Maryland side.

8. Cats - Fukuoka, Japan

Cats have overtaken a , about 20 minutes by ferry from Shingu’s port in Fukuoka City. The felines roam the small fishing town freely and are fed by the local fishermen. They have attracted cat-loving tourists to the islands and has spent over five years photographing and documenting their lives.

9. Cows - Goa, India

Hundreds of cows flock to the sandy beaches of Gao, specifically Anjuna beach, which has been nicknamed “Cow Beach.” The .

10. Monkeys - Emeishan, China

Emeishan Mountain is one of the , and it is renowned not only for its breathtaking views and ancient temples, but also for the monkeys from a nearby reserve that can be spotted hanging out along tourist trails. However, tourists are advised to be careful because can be aggressive when begging for food.

11. Peacocks - Palos Verdes Peninsula, California

Over 1,000 wild peacocks live in the upscale suburb of the Rolling Hills Estates on the Palos Verdes Peninsula, south of Los Angeles. They wander the streets and driveways, stroll by white fences, meander through front yards and hang out on the rooftops of the neighborhood’s ranch-style homes. to the neighborhood about 100 years ago and they are believed to have come from India, although their , according to Oddity Central.

12. Wallabies - Lambay Island, Ireland

Located off the coast of Ireland’s County Dublin, the private island of Lambay is home to a wild wallabies - the only ones in the country. The marsupials were released on the island when the , reports The Smithsonian. offers visitors water tours of the island to spot the wallabies.

13. Chickens - Kauai, Hawaii

The Hawaiian island of Kauai is known for its beaches, the Waimea Canyon, waterfalls and chickens. That’s right, the island has thousands of feral chickens running around, although their origin on the island is still unclear.

14. Green Iguanas - Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands

Green iguanas have made Grand Cayman in the Cayman Islands their home since the 1980s when they were brought over as pets and then multiplied in the wild, according to . The Department of Environment has been trying to reduce the green iguana population because it has no natural predators.

15. Sheep - New Zealand

There are more sheep than people in New Zealand. The country's population is roughly 4.4 million and sheep population is somewhere around 30 million according to . The first sheep were brought to New Zealand by Captain Cook in 1773 the population grew in the mid 1800s due to an increase in immigration.

16. Crabs - Christmas Island

Every year, between and head for the ocean to find a breeding ground. The event lasts for weeks and involves 14 different species of crabs.

17. Cats - Tonawanda Island, New York

In Niagara County, New York, the 85-acre island of Tonawanda is brimming with hundreds of abandoned cats. , according to odditycentral.com. To try to fix the problem, “Operation Island Cats” has been to fix the island’s cat problem. “Kittens young enough to be tamed and friendly adult cats will be socialized and put up for adoption,” founder of , Danielle Coogan, told weather.com. “The adult cats will be returned to the island once vaccinated, spayed, neutered and ear tipped.”

18. Rats - Montecristo, Italy

The island is a state nature reserve and is now overrun with rats. Some believe the rats made their way to the island as stowaways on the boats that many tourists take over to the uninhabited island.

19. Moose - Ylvingen, Norway

The moose population of the island of Ylvingen, a small island off Norway’s coastline, is so accustomed to humans that they don’t take to the woods for cover, according to a . The moose on the island outnumber people two to one.

20. Spiders - Guam

When the brown treesnake was accidentally introduced to Guam, the unincorporated territory of the U.S. in the western Pacific Ocean, in the 1940s they wiped out several of the islands native bird species drastically increasing the spider population to 40 times the normal number, reports . The brown tree snakes have been believed to be stowaways on U.S. military transport near the end of World War II.

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