Deformed daisies from Japan’s Fukishima nuclear disaster site have gone viral on the internet and have prompted environmental concerns. A patch of the wild flowers found near the site have generated international headlines after images of the mutated daisies were posted to Twitter by a local resident.
The deformed daisies were not spotted until four years after the Fukushima Daichii Nuclear Power Plant meltdown. The nuclear disaster occurred after an 8.9 magnitude earthquake hit the northeastern region of the country and sparked a massive tsunami.
The type of deformity afflicting the daisies is known as fasciation – or cresting. The condition is reportedly caused by a hormonal imbalance in vascular plants. The rare condition causes plants to increase in both volume and weight. There is reportedly no treatment for plants with this type of deformity.
“The right one grew up, (and) split into 2 stems to have 2 flowers connected (to) each other, having 4 stems of flower tied belt-like,” the tweet accompanying the deformed daisies photo by a user named San Kaido, read.
Although the daisies are capturing the attention of the internet at the moment, the deformed flowers are definitely not the only plant and animal mutations stemming from the area to cause alarm. Photos of “twisted” vegetables and purportedly mutated rabbits have also been shared from the Fukushima disaster area of Japan.
Approximately 300 tons of radioactive water is believed to still be leaking from the nuclear plant into the Pacific Ocean on a daily basis.
A video of the mutant bunny born near the Fukushima nuclear meltdown went viral in 2011. The rabbit was born without any ears. The physical deformity may have been just a birth defect which happened to coincide with the disaster or a result of the radioactive environment created after the earthquake and tsunami prompted the meltdown.
The twisted vegetables allegedly from the nuclear plant area reportedly found their way onto the market in Korea in 2013.
During the same time period, fish caught in the area of the plant reportedly possessed over 2,500 times the legally safe amount of radiation. The Tokyo Electric Power, Tepco, caught the radioactive fish and dubbed them “Mike the Murasai” when posting the photos online. The fish were caught in a bay near the main nuclear reactor in Daiichi.
What do you think about the deformed daisies and other concerns about animals and vegetables coming from the Fukushima nuclear disaster site?
[Image via MSN.]
