Bird Numbers Drop More Than Expected Around Fukushima

www.upi.com...

FUKUSHIMA, Japan, Feb. 8 (UPI) -- Bird populations near Japan's damaged Fukushima nuclear plant have dropped more than expected from a related analysis of the Chernobyl disaster, scientists say. Researchers counting birds at 300 locations in Fukushima prefecture from 15 to 30 miles from the Fukushima nuclear power complex damaged in last year's earthquake and tsunami said they found bird communities were significantly diminished in the more contaminated areas. They compared the findings to a similar study undertaken in Ukraine's Chernobyl Exclusion Zone from 2006 through 2009 and discovered that for 14 species of birds found in both locations, the decrease of population size was more pronounced at Fukushima than at Chernobyl, where a devastating nuclear power plant accident occurred in 1986. The study suggests "these birds, which have never experienced radiation of this intensity before, may be especially sensitive to radioactive contaminants," co-author Timothy Mousseau, a biologist at the University of South Carolina, said. The study suggests many similarities between the Chernobyl and Fukushima events and provides new insight into the first-generation effects of radiation exposure on animals in the wild, researchers said. "Our results point to the need for more research to determine the underlying reasons for differences among species in sensitivity, both initially and following many generations of exposure," Mousseau said in a University of South Carolina release Tuesday. Read more: www.upi.com...

OP could you find more information on this, like what birds specifically and more about comparisons with Chernobyl?

I did some research earlier today and was surprised to find out how much variety there is in severity of exposure, even among people.

Good post have been following your threads on this disaster and want to thank you for sharing

Duh... what the hell did they expect to happen? The things to flourish.

I would love to be able to question these people that make these expectations.. and fail.

Same thing with the Obama employment numbers etc. anyway. thanks for posting.

reply to post by Iamschist


no prob. will look into it.

here are the birds of japan

www.birdlist.org...

i seen the japanesse gov is giving free trips to tokyo in 2012 to show people 'everythings alright'
www.telegraph.co.uk...
some funny #

yep chernobyl is open for tourist too.


" price line negotiator "

....

imo we wont know the true comparison for years to come, but the fact that they are still dieing outright
a year later makes me worry. and the fact that they said " more than expected " leads me to believe its far more worst than chernobyl. since thats what im guessing is all they have to base it on.

reply to post by omegacorps

here are the birds of japan www.birdlist.org...

that is very informative, however what I was hoping for was a list of these birds:

They compared the findings to a similar study undertaken in Ukraine's Chernobyl Exclusion Zone from 2006 through 2009 and discovered that for 14 species of birds found in both locations,

fukishima will end up being a disaster of huge proportions when the damages are added up, of course that can only be started when it's done melting into the earth, which will be when?????

reply to post by omegacorps


How could they drop "more than expected?" I expected 100% of them to die. Apparently some "experts" had some idea of a number lower than that.

reply to post by Iamschist


yeah japan has a huge number of migratory birds.

i will go through both list and find the common birds

list them and post them for ya

might take a few days, or if any one has a link to the list of what they tested.

reply to post by omegacorps


Here is some additional information.

They found that populations of four groups of birds -- those whose red, yellow and orange plumage is based on carotenoids, those that laid the biggest eggs, and those that migrated or dispersed the furthest -- declined more than other species.

www.sciencedaily.com...

Update

Even low levels of radiation are already affecting bird populations near the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster, according to a new study in Environmental Pollution. Surveying birds in Fukushima Prefecture, an international team of scientists showed that higher levels of radiation correlated with smaller populations. The scientists attribute this to the fact that the power plant’s malfunction occurred in March, early in the breeding season.

Fukushima birds affected

And from the study the article is based on:

► Abundance of birds was negatively related to radiation in Chernobyl and Fukushima. ► Effects of radiation on abundance differed between Chernobyl and Fukushima and among species. ► For 14 species common to the two areas the effects of radiation on abundance were stronger in Fukushima than in Chernobyl.

Environmental Pollution, Volume 164 May 2012, pages 36-39

Here is a peer-reviews study indicating that negative environmental affects are worse from Fukushima than from Chernobyl.

reply to post by jadedANDcynical


great update!!

thanks.

i dont know why this is not in the japan
section yet.

great job