By Clay Dillow Posted 08.14.2012 at 1:20 pm 7 Comments

Mutant Butterflies Something doesn't look right. via Nature

The first serious indications of the ecosystem impact of the Fukushima nuclear disaster in Japan are in, and they’re troubling. Researchers there collected 144 common pale grass blue butterflies from the region a couple of months after the catastrophic nuclear meltdowns leaked radiation into the environment last year. After studying them for a few generations, those researchers are finding signs of genetic mutations that are leading to physical abnormalities.

Those abnormalities include smaller-sized wings, disfigured antennas, strange indentations in the eyes, and shifts in wing color patterns. Initially, only 12 percent of the butterflies sampled showed such mutations. But samples collected six months later showed abnormalities on the rise--28 percent of this second group exhibited abnormalities while 52 percent of their offspring expressed mutations, indicating that the genetic issues arising from the radiation exposure are manifesting themselves further generation after generation.

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Science, Clay Dillow, fukushima, fukushima nuclear disaster, health, mutations, radiation, tohoku earthquake
That’s not good news, though it’s no reason to panic either, the researchers say. Butterflies are good barometers for this kind of thing, because they exist nearly everywhere and their life cycles are relatively rapid, allowing researchers to observe many generations in a short span. But how radiation exposure will affect other species--like livestock, fish, or humans--has yet to be seen. Species’ sensitivities to radiation vary, so there’s no reason to assume these kinds of mutations will apply to humans in the area.

Radiation spilled into the region after the March 2011 9.0-magnitude Tohoku earthquake knocked backup generators offline at a local nuclear power station. The inability to cool those reactors in the immediate aftermath of the earthquake caused meltdowns at three of the station’s reactors.

[MSNBC]

7 Comments

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J. James
08/14/12 at 1:50 pm

I'm probably going to be labeled a bad person over this, but I can't help but think,

"MOTHRAAAAAAA!!"

---
Always defer to facts rather than philosophy.

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DickySimms
08/14/12 at 3:06 pm

Haha, I had the same though, James. Not that it means you're not a bad person, it just means we both are.

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laurenra7
08/14/12 at 6:05 pm

I keep waiting for PopSci to pay attention to the most historic study of prolonged radiation exposure in 60 years, done at MIT:

http://web.mit.edu/newsoffice/2012/prolonged-radiation-exposure-0515.html

The quick summary is that estimates of "safe" levels of exposure are likely extremely conservative. Why?

'"Almost all radiation studies are done with one quick hit of radiation. That would cause a totally different biological outcome compared to long-term conditions," says Engelward, an associate professor of biological engineering at MIT.'

The MIT study indicates no significant detrimental effect for exposure to long term radiation at levels several times higher than the commonly-agreed "safe" levels that were set 60 years ago.

As for the butterfly study, the authors say, "Although epigenetic effects cannot be entirely excluded, it is most likely that the abnormal phenotypes observed are produced by random mutations caused by the exposure to radiation." Apparently epigenetic effects absent radiation exposure are significant enough that they get mentioned. I'd love to see someone do a control study to quantify those effects in the same area; ideally a study of butterflies in the same areas before and after exposure.

Also, butterflies where chosen specifically because they exhibit sensitivity to radiation exposure, something that is not true of other species including moths. It goes without saying that mammals--and humans in particular--don't exhibit the same sensitivity. It's impossible to draw any conclusions about human safety from the butterfly study.

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cholin3947
08/14/12 at 6:15 pm

@ J. James

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W4y5ieSjQBI

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blackmetal06
08/14/12 at 11:44 pm

if radiation is mutating butterflies then maybe it might turn a lizard into godzilla

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Robot
08/15/12 at 7:52 am

God bless the people of Japan and I hope their recovery comes quickly!

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spark55155
08/15/12 at 1:13 pm

This will lead to a race of super butterflies that will eventually walk the planet in a reign of terror.



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