Scientists at the University at Buffalo have begun work on research into the level of chemical contamination in eggs.
Scientists have discovered all three types of chemicalsin the organs of more than two dozen common terns in spawning grounds along the Niagara River and on the shores of Lake Erie. Contaminants have been found at different stages in the life of birds: in chickens, juveniles and adults.
The researchers also discovered the chemicals in the fish, which is the main food source for terns in the area.
Those chemicals are still there.They won't just disappear. For example, PCBs (polychlorinated biphenyls) are no longer produced in the US, but you can still find them in the environment, in sediments and water. They do not decompose for many years. The fish eat the organisms that accumulate them, and then the birds eat the fish.
Henry M. Woodburn, Ph.D., Professor of Chemistry at the University at Buffalo
The authors write in their paper that the levels of chemicals in the birds were high enough to potentially harm health and affect population recovery.
The data obtained show how household andindustrial chemicals have become ubiquitous in the environment. In it, these compounds can persist for many years, posing a threat to wildlife.
In the case of terns, the threat begins from the very first moments of their lives, even before they hatch.
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