While the population of the bald eagle in Michigan is stable researchers are concerned about what they're finding in the birds.
Environmental Health News reported on those findings. Writer Brian Bienkowski told WMUK's Gordon Evans that the population of the bald eagle in Michigan and the United States rebounded after chemicals such as DDT's had caused a major drop.
But now researchers are finding flame retardant chemicals, commonly used in couches, textiles and wire insulation, in the liver tissues of several species, including the bald eagle. Bienkowski says the research is not yet conclusive on what health problems the PBDEs may cause for the birds.
"They get into fish, they get into birds and ultimately they get into us."
While the majority of PBDEs have been phased out, Bienkowski says they persist in the environment, and will be there for some time. But he says it's not clear whether new chemicals are harmful to the bald eagle or to other birds. Bienkowski says it can be difficult for researchers to pin down whether a certain chemical could have caused an eagle's death or health problems.
Environmental Health News has launched a series called Winged Warnings on problems faced by various species of birds. Bienkowski says the reporting has shown that some chemicals can create different problems for different birds. He says that should serve as a warning about those substances. "They circumvent the globe, they travel on air currents, on water currents, they get into fish, they get into birds and ultimately they get into us."
