Park visits predict changes in birth rates during the pandemic

AS LOCKDOWNS FORCED couples to “Netflix and chill” every night, it seemed plausible that covid-19 might lead to a baby boom. Instead, it has caused a bust. The 21 countries that have published data for January—the first full month in which babies conceived during the first wave were due—report, on average, 11% less births per 1,000 people than in January 2020, and 12% less than you would expect based on each country’s fertility trend in 2009-19.