Radiation Effects on Animals

Following the 1986 Chernobyl nuclear power plant meltdown, biological samples were obtained only after extensive delays, limiting the information that could be gained about the impacts of that historic disaster. Determined not to repeat the shortcomings of the Chernobyl studies, scientists began gathering biological information only a few months after the disastrous meltdown of the Fukushima Daiichi power plant in Japan in 2011. Results of these studies are now beginning to reveal serious biological effects of the Fukushima radiation on non-human organisms ranging from plants to butterflies to birds.

While radiation can refer to all forms of electromagnetic radiation, including light and radio waves, it's more often used when describing ionizing radiation--high-energy radiation that can ionize atoms, such as the radiation released by the decay of radioactive isotopes. X-rays, gamma rays, and alpha and beta particles are all forms of...

Radiation Facts and Myths Many have claimed that wildlife is thriving in the highly-radioactive Chernobyl Exclusion Zone. Some claim that a little radiation is harmless … or even good for you. One ...