title: Radioactive contamination of arthropods from different trophic levels in hilly and mountainous areas after the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant accident.
abstract: In order to understand the influence of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant accident on the ecosystem in hilly and mountainous areas of Fukushima Prefecture, chronological changes in the levels of radiocesium in arthropod species were investigated. From 2012 to 2014, arthropods from different trophic levels were sampled and the air radiation dose rates at the sampling sites were analyzed. The air radiation dose rates showed a significant and constant reduction over the 2 years at the sampling sites in Fukushima. The median radiocesium concentration (134Cs +137Cs) detected in the rice grasshopper, Oxya yezoensis, and the Emma field cricket, Teleogryllus emma, dropped continuously to 0.080 and 0.078 Bq/g fresh weight, respectively, in 2014. In contrast, no significant reduction in radioactive contamination was observed in the Jorô spider, Nephila clavata, in which the level remained at 0.204 Bq/g in 2014. A significant positive correlation between radiocesium concentration and the air radiation dose rate was observed in the rice grasshopper, the Emma field cricket and the Jorô spider. The highest correlation coefficient (ρ = 0.946) was measured in the grasshopper.
authors.affiliation: Department of International Agricultural Development, Faculty of International Agriculture and Food Studies, Tokyo University of Agriculture, 1-1-1 Sakuragaoka, Setagaya, 156-8502 Tokyo, Japan. Electronic address: tanaka.sota.57s@st.kyoto-u.ac.jp.
authors.forename: Sota
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Tanaka
authors.affiliation: Department of International Agricultural Development, Faculty of International Agriculture and Food Studies, Tokyo University of Agriculture, 1-1-1 Sakuragaoka, Setagaya, 156-8502 Tokyo, Japan.
authors.forename: Kaho
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Hatakeyama
authors.affiliation: Division of Radiation Safety and Control, Kyoto University Research Reactor Institute, Kumatori, Sennan, Osaka 590-0494, Japan.
authors.forename: Sentaro
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Takahashi
authors.affiliation: Department of International Agricultural Development, Faculty of International Agriculture and Food Studies, Tokyo University of Agriculture, 1-1-1 Sakuragaoka, Setagaya, 156-8502 Tokyo, Japan. Electronic address: t3adati@nodai.ac.jp.
authors.forename: Tarô
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Adati
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001181:Arthropods / Q000737:chemistry*; D002587:Cesium Isotopes / Q000032:analysis*; D062406:Fukushima Nuclear Accident; D006110:Grasshoppers / Q000737:chemistry; D006135:Gryllidae / Q000737:chemistry; D055848:Nuclear Power Plants; D011834:Radiation Monitoring; D013112:Spiders / Q000737:chemistry
chemical_list: D002587:Cesium Isotopes
keywords: Cricket; Grasshopper; Nuclear power plant accident; Radiocesium; Spider; Trophic level