India, Oct. 31 -- Almost four decades since the Chernobyl nuclear disaster, wildlife in the forests nearby is still giving researchers information about the behavior of animals towards the environment. An especially interesting observation is that in the Eastern tree frogs have darker skin in places with the highest exposure to radiation due to the 1986 disaster in Ukraine. This can be related to the benefits of melanin, the substance that gives darker color to living organisms.

According to a 2022 study published in Evolutionary Applications, exposure to radiation may have influenced the frogs' appearance over successive generations. Scientists believe that melanin, the pigment responsible for darker coloration, could have played a role...