麻豆淫院

Researchers have measured toxins in scat samples from 205 bowhead whales from the Beaufort Sea, collected over 19 years, and found that algal toxin concentrations changed with ocean temperatures, the amount of water that was ice-free, wind speed and atmospheric pressure.

The research is in the journal Nature.

Over the past 20 years, the Arctic has experienced ocean warming and sea ice loss, which have changed the marine environment. Such changes may provide favorable growing conditions for harmful algal blooms, which produce toxins that can have detrimental effects on wildlife and humans. However, there is limited data on how exposure to these harmful toxins may be changing in the Arctic.

Researcher Kathi Lefebvre and colleagues also found that higher toxin levels were associated with increased ocean warming and reduced sea ice extent.

This finding suggests that more toxins are entering the food chain, affecting marine animals, and potentially humans who rely on marine resources for food, the authors conclude. They recommend ongoing monitoring for harmful algal toxic bloom exposure in marine animals to protect Arctic communities that depend on these resources for food.