Geotrupine beetles (Coleoptera: Scarabaeoidea) as bio-monitors of man-made radioactivity

Adults of the geotrupine beetle Anoplotrupes stercorosus (Coleoptera, Geotrupidae), a common European forest insect species, were used in the role of bio-monitors for mainly man-made radionuclides in a forest environment. Activities of 137Cs, 40K, 238Pu, (239+240)Pu, 90Sr and 241Am were studied. Samples originated from four areas in Poland, two from the north-east and two from the south of the country. The north-eastern areas were previously recognized as the places where hot particle fallout from Chernobyl took place. Results confirmed the differences in the activities between north-eastern and southern locations. Significant correlations were found between activities of 40K and 137Cs, and between activities of plutonium and americium isotopes. An additional study of the concentration of radionuclides within the bodies of beetles showed a general pattern of distribution of radioisotopes in the insect body.