The accident at the Fukushima nuclear plant, near Japan, has caused genetic mutations in at least three generations of butterflies, according to a study by Ryukyo University in Okinawa that was just published in the journal Nature . Among the blue butterflies of the Pseudozizeeria maha species, very common in the Japanese country, they discovered that 12% of those that were in the larval stage during the disaster that occurred after the earthquake on March 11, 2011 had much smaller wings and irregularly developed eyes .
The observations carried out showed that in later generations the genetic changes that caused the malformations were present in an increasing proportion. Specifically, in 34% in the third generation of butterflies and in 52% in butterflies caught six months after the disaster. For Joji Otaki and his colleagues there is no doubt that the radiation released from the Fukushima Daiichi plant damaged the genes of these insects. However, to know if other animals have been affected in a similar way will require similar experiments for each species. On the other hand, scientists believe that it will take decades before the area around Fukushima can once again be inhabited by the population without health risks.
