DEVELOPMENTAL INSTABILITY OF PLANTS AND RADIATION FROM CHERNOBYL

Phenotypic measures of developmental instability were used to assess t he hypothesis that radiation from Chernobyl in Ukraine directly affect s the developmental processes of plants. Fluctuating asymmetry and the frequency of phenodeviants in three species of plants, Robinia pseudo acacia, Sorbus aucuparia and Matricaria perforata, were assessed along a transect from the security zone of Chernobyl towards the largely un contaminated area 225 km SE of Chernobyl. Measure of developmental ins tability decreased in a similar way for the three species with increas ing distance from Chernobyl the level of developmental instability bei ng three to four times as large near Chernobyl as in the control area. Developmental instability was positively related to the level of radi ation by caesium-137 along the transect. In conclusion, radiation From Chernobyl has resulted in a reduced ability of plants to control the stability of their developmental processes.