The Minamata poisoning episode provided local researchers with the hard evidence that first linked mercury discharges to its bioaccumulation in the environment. Cats in Minamata were the first to show signs of mercury poisoning, although at the time the unusual behaviour exhibited by the cats was unexplained. The disease was known locally as “dancing cat disease” in reference to the uncontrollable muscle spasms and tremors seen in the poisoned cats. Further research on the cats led scientists to the conclusion that mercury contamination in the fish and shellfish was the cause of this strange and lethal disease. Unfortunately for the people of Minamata, government officials waited.
