Could the dogs inside of the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone (CEZ) be experiencing rapid evolution due to their exposure to the nuclear radiation left behind after the Chernobyl disaster in 1986? Some scientists think so, but not everyone is convinced.
Of course, this is far from the first or last time that scientists have found themselves scratching their heads and wondering just how radiation in the CEZ might affect the rate of evolution in animals, people, and plants. One reason that the CEZ has become such a hotbed for these theories, though, is because animal and plant life has absolutely exploded since humanity cleared out of the area, and it remains radioactive nearly 40 years later.
As time pressed on, though, scientists have become even more keen to dive deeper into the possible evolutionary implications that might be waiting to be discovered in the CEZ. One 2025 study has taken a deeper look at the possible effect radiation has had on both flora and fauna, offering some insight into the way that these creatures and plants have responded to living in chronic radiation exposure. And while there have been key observations of genetic damages across the board, there also appear to have been some adaptive responses noticed, too. And considering Chernobyl is often considered one of the worst nuclear disasters in the world, scientists have always paid a close eye to the after effects of the disaster.
Additionally, another study from 2024 noted clear observations of genetic differences between the dogs inside and outside of the CEZ, but the researchers say we have only begun to scratch the surface of whether or not we’re actually seeing rapid evolution right before our eyes.
Inconclusive information is still a starting point
A lot of the reason why scientists can’t say for sure one way or the other is because most of the data they have gathered is still very inconclusive. While the signs of genetic differences are there, the dogs that they are studying now are not the same dogs that lived in the CEZ when the disaster first took place. They are often several generations beyond, which means they have lived within the radiation exposure all of their lives.
A different study published earlier in 2023 also looked at the demographics of the dogs in the CEZ and found that there were at least 15 different families that shared some kind of ancestral genome. Additionally, that study found that the dogs within Chernobyl City were “genetically distinct” from other dogs in the world, with many “displaying increased intrapopulation genetic similarity and differentiation.” All of this is to say, they appear to be different in some ways from dogs outside of the CEZ.
Still up for debate
The exact extent of these differences — and whether or not they are actual evolutionary changes — is still up for debate, given the researcher’s study from 2024, as well as statements by those involved with the study, mention that the genetic differences found in the later generations of Chernobyl dogs does not appear to be attributed to nuclear-driven mutations. This means the genetic changes cannot be directly tied to the chronic radiation exposure that they have lived most of their lives through. However, it’s still hard to say definitively, especially since scientists are looking at dogs that are several generations removed from the original dogs that roamed Chernobyl in the 1980s.
With the oldest nuclear power plant in the world garnering backlash of its own, having a deeper understanding of how radiation exposure can drive evolution will prove useful to knowing more about the long-term effects on both animals and plants. Hopefully scientists will dig even deeper and truly determine whether or not dogs in the CEZ are experiencing rapid evolution and how that might affect other animals and plants should other disasters like this strike.
