Dogs with bright blue fur have been spotted for the first time in the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone. This is reported in the Daily Mail.
Volunteers from the organization “Chernobyl Dogs”, who care for animals in the disaster zone, reported that a week ago these dogs had a normal color, but now their fur has acquired an unnatural shade. According to preliminary assumptions, the animals may have come into contact with some kind of chemical substance. Volunteers are trying to catch them for testing.
The organization, which has been caring for about 700 dogs in an area of about 18 square miles since 2017, stressed that despite their unusual coat color, the animals remain active and appear healthy. All of the dogs are descendants of pets abandoned after the Chernobyl nuclear disaster in 1986.
Scientists took blood samples from 116 stray dogs living in the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone and found two distinct populations that are genetically distinct from other dogs in the surrounding areas. This indicates their ability to adapt to prolonged exposure to a toxic environment and explains why these animals continue to survive successfully in the remote area.
The research team was led by Norman J. Kleiman, an environmental scientist at Columbia University. Scientists wanted to find out how life in extreme conditions affected the genetic characteristics of dogs, because natural disasters that pollute or destroy habitats often force wild populations to adapt to adverse factors. It is not yet known whether the blue color of the coat is associated with radiation, genetic changes or exposure to chemicals, but this phenomenon has already attracted the attention of geneticists and ecologists around the world.
