Long-lasting industrial pollutants are threatening the ivory gull, a small Arctic bird, Norwegian scientists report. The Norwegian Polar Institute found record levels of PCBs and the pesticide DDT in ivory gull eggs collected off northern Norway and Russia. Arctic levels of many persistent pollutants — which accumulate in the environment and in the body fat of birds, fish, and mammals — have declined in recent years. But Canada’s ivory gull population has reportedly dropped by 80 percent, triggering the Norwegian survey. A Polar Institute scientist explained the ivory gulls’ heavy toxic burden by noting that, as predators and scavengers, they are high on the food chain. In another threat, the birds’ habitat is shrinking along with Arctic sea ice.
PCBs and DDT Threaten Arctic Gull
More From E360
-
INTERVIEW
Marina Silva on Brazil’s Fight to Turn the Tide on Deforestation
-
Solutions
Solomon Islands Tribes Sell Carbon Credits, Not Their Trees
-
INTERVIEW
With Sea Turtles in Peril, a Call for New Strategies to Save Them
-
RIVERS
Jared Kushner Has Big Plans for Delta of Europe’s Last Wild River
-
Energy
A Nuclear Power Revival Is Sparking a Surge in Uranium Mining
-
OPINION
Despite Official Vote, the Evidence of the Anthropocene Is Clear
-
INTERVIEW
At 11,500 Feet, a ‘Climate Fast’ to Save the Melting Himalaya
-
Oceans
Octopuses Are Highly Intelligent. Should They Be Farmed for Food?
-
Climate
Nations Are Undercounting Emissions, Putting UN Goals at Risk
-
Solutions
As Carbon Air Capture Ramps Up, Major Hurdles Remain
-
ANALYSIS
How China Became the World’s Leader on Renewable Energy
-
Biodiversity
As Flooding Increases on the Mississippi, Forests Are Drowning