Pollutants in North Pacific Albatrosses

Abstract

Visceral fat from Black-footed Albatrosses, Diomedea nigripes, and Laysan Albatrosses, D. immutabilis, from Midway Atoll, North Pacific Ocean, in 1969 contained appreciable residues of DDT, DDE, and PCBs, and measurable quantities of DDD, dieldrin, and mercury. Greater residues in Black-footed Albatrosses may have resulted from scavenging. No gamma-emitting radionuclides were detected. No decreases in eggshell weight occurred in either species between 1910 and 1969.