from fukushimaupdate.com: via DW.de / August 16, 2012 / The effects of the nuclear disaster in Fukushima have now become visible in butterflies. Researchers worry the effects may start to be felt among human beings. The butterflies found to be deformed as a result of radiation from the nuclear meltdown in Fukushima belong to the butterfly family of gossamer-winged butterflies. These butterflies can be found throughout the world. They are very sensitive to changes in the environment – to water and air pollution, chemicals and radioactivity. For scientists, gossamer-winged butterflies are thus a good biological indicator of the health of the environment. When they get sick, it means there is a problem somewhere in the ecosystem – even if there don’t seem to be any apparent problems, Winfrid Eisenberg, radiation expert and member of International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War (IPPNW), told DW. “The findings of the Japanese scientists don’t surprise me. There were similar findings in studies conducted after Chernobyl,” he explained.

Related: Record cesium found in fish off Fukushima*
Plutonium traces detected at 10 locations in Fukushima*